- US stocks traded mixed on Wednesday as investors awaited the July CPI report.
- Markets are hoping cooler inflation will push the Fed to end its rate hike campaign.
US stocks fell Wednesday as investors waited for key inflation data to roll out Thursday morning.
Major indexes ended in the red, continuing this week's sell-off and struggling to recover as August proves tough for investors coming off a hot streak earlier this summer.
Economists polled by Dow Jones expect inflation to accelerate 3.3% annually in July, while $4 expect inflation to accelerate 3.4% year-over-year. Both estimates are slightly higher than the inflation figures reported in June, when prices rose 3%.
Investors are hoping that cooler inflation data could influence the Federal Reserve to end its rate hike campaign, which would likely be a boon for stocks. Central bankers will also be considering August inflation and jobs data when making their policy decisions next month, but markets already have priced in an 87% chance rates will be held steady at the September FOMC meeting, according to the $4.
In the meantime, investors have their eye on The Walt Disney Company, which is set to report earnings after the closing bell. Shares of the entertainment giant have slid 18% over the past year as it struggles to grow earnings amid an uncertain macro environment.
Here's where US indexes stood at the 4 p.m. ET close on Wednesday:
- S&P 500>$4: 4,467.84, down 0.7%
- Dow Jones Industrial Average>$4: 35,123.95, down 0.54% (190.54 points)
- Nasdaq Composite>$4: 13,722.02, down 1.17%
Here's what else happened today:
- $4 after this week's inflation report, Fundstrat said.
- $4 as the economy detoxes from the pandemic trucking boom.
- $4 isn't going to drag down the US economy, Ned Davis Research said.
- $4, according to top economist Paul Krugman.
- $4, thanks to a new executive order from President Biden.
- $4 loans as pressure mounts in the sector.
- $4 as energy workers in Australia look poised to strike.
In commodities, bonds and crypto: