Aug 18 Wall Street looked set to open little changed on Thursday, a day after minutes of the Federal Reserve’s July meeting showed policymakers were divided over whether to raise interest rates in the near-term.
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The minutes disappointed those expecting that the Fed could be turning more hawkish.
While traders have nearly completely ruled out a hike in September, they have priced in a 41.7 percent chance for a move in December – down from 45.1 percent on Wednesday, according to CME Group’s FedWatch tool.
“There is a bit of uncertainty over the Fed’s decision and Yellen’s speech next week is motivating investors to take some money off the table”, said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at First Standard Financial in NY.
In the interview, Dudley said, “we are edging closer toward the point in time when it will be appropriate to raise rates further”. The S&P 500 Index traded near record levels, while emerging-market shares halted a two-day slide.
Dow component Wal-Mart rose 3 percent to $75.13 premarket after the retailer posted better-than-expected quarterly profit.
Additionally, the Conference Board released a report showing that its leading economic index rose by 0.4 percent in July following a 0.3 percent increase in June. The dollar was down 0.40 percent against the franc at 0.9576 franc. New York Federal Reserve President William Dudley, in a speech, said the labor market appeared to be on track for more improvement and that the wage inflation measures that he follows are starting to tick higher.
Williams does not have a vote on Fed policy this year, but his views are seen as influential on the policy-setting committee because of his longstanding relationship with Fed Chair Janet Yellen, his former boss at the San Francisco Fed, and his research-driven style. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast claims slipping to 265,000.
Prices had dipped slightly during early Asian trade but later rebounded, with Brent crude briefly pushing past the psychological US$50 (RM199.40) mark.
Williams himself fueled some of that speculation with an essay published this week calling for a recalibration of the Fed’s long-term goals given a growing body of research suggesting USA growth has permanently slowed.
U.S. crude inventories fell by 2.5 million barrels in the week to August 12, and gasoline stocks fell 2.7 million barrels, pointing to a modest strengthening of United States demand.
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Networking company Cisco Systems fell 1.63% ahead of the opening bell, after saying late on Wednesday it will slash 5,500 jobs.
