US STOCKS-Futures flat with focus on tariff deadline, Fed decision


Reuters | Washington DC | Updated: 11-12-2019 19:10 IST | Created: 11-12-2019 18:47 IST
US STOCKS-Futures flat with focus on tariff deadline, Fed decision
  • Country:
  • United States

U.S. stock index futures pointed to a flat opening on Wednesday, with eyes fixed on the latest outcome of the Federal Reserve's deliberations on interest rates and the looming deadline on tariffs in President Donald Trump's trade war with China.

Stocks have stalled so far in December after three straight months of gains, hurt by worries over a delay in the signing of an interim trade deal between Washington and Beijing as well as global growth concerns. President Donald Trump has just days to decide whether to impose levies on nearly $160 billion in Chinese goods.

The White House's top economic and trade advisers are expected to meet in the coming days with Trump over the decision, a source told Reuters, though a final decision has not been made. The Fed is widely expected to keep interest rates steady in its last policy statement of the year, due at 2:00 p.m. ET (1900 GMT). Investors are also awaiting Fed Chair Jerome Powell's outlook on the economy when he holds a news conference later in the day.

Also slated for this week is the European Central Bank meeting on Thursday, along with general elections in Britain. Data on Wednesday at 8:30 a.m. ET is expected to show the Labor Department's consumer price index (CPI) rose 0.2% in November, compared with a 0.4% gain a month earlier, according to economists polled by Reuters.

Other upcoming domestic indicators of interest this week include monthly inflation data and retail sales. At 7:31 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis were down 34 points, or 0.12%. S&P 500 e-minis were up 0.25 points, or 0.01% and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were up 7.5 points, or 0.09%.

Among stocks, Home Depot Inc fell 1% in premarket trading after the home improvement chain forecast fiscal 2020 sales growth below Wall Street expectations, weeks after the company cut its 2019 sales forecast. Tesla Inc gained 1.2% as the electric carmaker plans to increase prices of imported Model 3 vehicles in China in January, according to sources familiar with the matter.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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