Traders on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange, April 5, 2022.
Source: NYSE
Stock futures were mostly flat on Sunday evening as Wall Street looked to pull off a losing week.
Futures linked to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were down 16 points, or less than 0.1%. Those of the S&P 500 Index also fell less than 0.1%, while those of the Nasdaq 100 Index were up 0.1%.
Wall Street is coming off a negative week, with the tech sector being a concern. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index fell 3.9% last week, while the S&P 500 and Dow fell 1.3% and 0.3%, respectively.
The healthcare sector was a bright spot, gaining more than 3%.
Anti-inflation is likely to be a market driver this week. Investors will take a look at the new data, as the March CPI is due on Tuesday, and the PPI will follow on Wednesday.
Loretta Meester, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, told CBS’ “Face the Nation” on Sunday that she still believes the Fed can control inflation without causing serious damage to the economy.
“If you look at the risks, looking at what is happening in the world and in the economy, there are increased risks [of recession]”But I’m still optimistic, and certainly my typical prediction of what’s going to happen this year is that expansion will continue.”
Meester added that the Covid lockdowns in China would “exacerbate” the supply chain problems that are contributing to inflation in the United States.
Investors will also be watching developments in Ukraine. The Russian invasion of the country caused volatility in the oil and other commodity markets, which in turn upset stocks.
Later this week, first-quarter earnings season will hit its feet, with JPMorgan Chase and Delta due to report results Wednesday morning.