U.S. stock futures rise as interest rates in focus

S&P 500 Futures gained 0.1% to 6,479.0 points, Nasdaq 100 Futures added 0.2% to 23,845.0 points, while Dow Jones Futures advanced 0.1% to 45,085.0 points

U.S. stock index futures rose slightly on Sunday evening, extending gains after a mildly positive week as investors looked to the upcoming Jackson Hole Symposium for more cues on interest rates.

Futures rose after Wall Street clocked a series of record highs last week, amid increasing bets that the Fed will cut interest rates in September. But strong producer inflation data somewhat dented this notion.

Risk aversion over U.S.-Russia talks for an end to the Ukraine war also weighed, with markets now looking to talks between Kyiv and Washington.

A host of key U.S. retail earnings are also on tap this week, and will offer up more cues on the strength of the consumer.

S&P 500 Futures gained 0.1% to 6,479.0 points, while Nasdaq 100 Futures added 0.2% to 23,845.0 points by 23:27 GMT. Dow Jones Futures advanced 0.1% to 45,085.0 points.

In the U.S., focus this week is squarely on Fed Jerome Powell’s speech at the Jackson Hole symposium later this week, which is expected to provide more cues on interest rates.

Powell’s address comes amid growing conviction that the Federal Reserve will lower interest rates by 25 basis points in September, especially following soft payrolls and consumer inflation numbers for July.

But strong producer inflation data released last week somewhat hurt bets on a September cut, in turn weighing on Wall Street. Investors are pricing in 83% probability for a 25-basis point cut in September, according to CME Fedwatch.

The S&P 500 dropped 0.3% to 6,449.80 points, while the NASDAQ Composite declined 0.4% to 44,946.12 points on Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.1% to 44,946.12 points. All three indexes gained between 0.7% and 1.9% last week, with the Dow outpacing its peers.

The Dow outperformed chiefly on gains in insurer Unitedhealth Group after Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc disclosed a stake in the firm.