U.S. Stock Futures Lower Ahead of Key Inflation Data
U.S. stock futures edged down on Wednesday as investors awaited key inflation data later this week that could influence the Federal Reserve’s approach to potential interest rate cuts in 2024. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite closed higher in the prior session, boosted by a surge in shares of artificial intelligence chipmaker Nvidia A closely-watched monitor of semiconductors added 1.9%, lifting the benchmark S&P 500. Meanwhile, the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped, weighed down by rising U.S. Treasury yields.
Traders are keenly awaiting the release of the monthly personal consumption expenditures price index on Friday. As the Fed’s preferred gauge of inflation, this figure could heavily influence policymakers’ views on the trajectory of price gains. Recent signs of persistent inflation have led several Fed officials to call for more evidence of cooling prices before considering interest rate cuts from current two-decade highs.
Salesforce to Report Earnings
Salesforce is set to report its fiscal first-quarter earnings after the market close on Wednesday, with Wall Street focusing on updates regarding its Data Cloud division. This unit is poised to benefit from the growing interest in artificial intelligence. Analysts at Goldman Sachs expect strong demand for the segment due to Salesforce’s AI-enhanced products.
In the fourth quarter, Data Cloud’s annual recurring revenue neared $400 million, growing by almost 90% year-over-year. Salesforce President Brian Millham indicated in February that this result reflects the demand for AI transformation within companies. However, Salesforce faces challenges from broader economic uncertainties and inflationary pressures affecting small- and medium-sized businesses.
American Airlines Lowers Earnings Outlook
Shares of American Airlines fell in extended trading after the company lowered its second-quarter earnings outlook. The airline now expects earnings per share between $1.00 and $1.15, down from the previous range of $1.15 to $1.45. Total revenue per available seat mile (TRASM) is expected to decline by 5% to 6%, compared to an earlier estimate of a 1% to 3% drop.
American Airlines also forecasted that its quarterly flying capacity will remain flat compared to the same period in 2023, a revision from an earlier projection of a 7% to 9% increase. Additionally, the airline announced the departure of Chief Commercial Officer Vasu Raja in June.
BHP Seeks Extension in Anglo American Takeover Talks
BHP Group has requested more time for negotiations with Anglo American as the deadline for a formal takeover offer approaches. Last week, London-listed Anglo American rejected a bid from BHP reportedly worth £38.6 billion. The two companies now have until 5 p.m. London time on Wednesday to reach an agreement, following a week-long extension.
BHP stated that the extension would allow for “further engagement on its proposal.” The world’s largest listed mining group has proposed various measures to address Anglo’s concerns about the deal structure, including the unbundling of Anglo’s platinum and iron ore assets in South Africa.
“BHP is confident that the measures it has proposed to the Board of Anglo American provide a viable pathway to resolve the matters raised by Anglo American,” BHP said. Anglo American has stated it will respond to BHP’s request “in due time.”
Crude Gains Ahead of U.S. Inventory Data
Crude prices rose on Wednesday, continuing recent gains on hopes that demand will increase with the start of the travel-heavy U.S. summer season. Investors are also looking ahead to a meeting by major producers to decide future output levels, which could further impact prices
The following are the pivot points for the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust. Pivot High: $530.16, Pivot Low: $526.76. These were calculated using the DeMark method. It is generally believed to be bullish when price breaks out above the pivot high or bearish when price breaks down below the pivot low.
The following are the pivot points for the Financial Select Sector. Pivot High: $41.34, Pivot Low: $40.82. These were calculated using the DeMark method. It is generally believed to be bullish when price breaks out above the pivot high or bearish when price breaks down below the pivot low.
The following are the pivot points for the Invesco QQQ Trust. Pivot High: $461.24, Pivot Low: $458.19. These were calculated using the DeMark method. It is generally believed to be bullish when price breaks out above the pivot high or bearish when price breaks down below the pivot low.
$AAPL- BofA views the upcoming AI-enabled iPhones, or “IntelliPhones,” to drive a multi-year upgrade cycle similar to the step function improvement driven by the introduction of smartphones and sees the opportunity for the next upgrade cycle to be a “once in a decade type of event,” the analyst tells investors. While BofA does not expect all of the advanced machine learning and AI technologies features at WWDC, it does expect a pathway for the “IntelliPhones” to become mainstream, especially as conversational AI gets more integrated into daily use. The firm maintains a Buy rating and $230 price target on Apple shares.
$NVDA- Nvidia (NVDA) plans to adopt Fan-Out Panel Level Packaging technology for its GB200 AI server chips ahead of schedule, aimed at addressing the tight production capacity of Chip on Wafer on Substrate packaging at TSMC (TSM), DigiTimes’ Amanda Liang and Willis Ke repor
The OpenAI Board announced that it has formed a Safety and Security Committee led by directors Bret Taylor, Adam D’Angelo, Nicole Seligman, and Sam Altman. This committee will be responsible for making recommendations to the full Board on critical safety and security decisions for OpenAI projects and operations. “OpenAI has recently begun training its next frontier model and we anticipate the resulting systems to bring us to the next level of capabilities on our path to AGI. While we are proud to build and release models that are industry-leading on both capabilities and safety, we welcome a robust debate at this important moment. A first task of the Safety and Security Committee will be to evaluate and further develop OpenAI’s processes and safeguards over the next 90 days. At the conclusion of the 90 days, the Safety and Security Committee will share their recommendations with the full Board. Following the full Board’s review, OpenAI will publicly share an update on adopted recommendations in a manner that is consistent with safety and security.” Google (GOOGL), Meta (META), Microsoft (MSFT), and Amazon (AMZN) previously committed to safe AI development at the AI Seoul Summit 2024, hosted by South Korea and the U.K.
Hey OP! Yesterday’s plan paid quick as we shorted NVDA and QQQ for gain. The Activity Post I sent out on rug pulls was perfectly timed as they did just that a few minutes later. Congrats to all that stacked and protected. Today I’ll be watching to see if the market continues to drop or bounces. Not going to force a trade here as it is a coin flip. I’m still on a family vacation and will return to usual trading schedule Monday. See you in chat!
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