The main Wall Street indices saw a mixed session on Wall Street, but are on course for strong gains this week, mainly boosted by optimism over a U.S.-China trade deal.
With the trade turmoil seemingly settling down, investors are turning their attention to the economic data slate, looking for signs of damage being done to the world’s largest economy.
The latest producer price index is due later in the session, and is tipped to show that the producer price index for final demand inched up by 0.2% on a monthly basis in April.
In March, the PPI dipped for the first time since 2023, dragged down in part by a slump in gasoline costs. Fears that tit-for-tat tariffs would spark a global economic downturn dented oil prices.
Year-over-year, the measure is seen easing to 2.5% from a prior level of 2.7%.
The reading comes just days after a softer-than-expected consumer price index inflation print for April, which helped boost hopes that U.S. inflation was cooling enough for the Fed to cut interest rates further.
Retail sales for April are also due out Thursday. A surge of buying before the implementation of Trump’s punishing tariffs led to the largest increase in the metric in more than two years in March. Separate surveys have indicated that households have widely been anticipating that the levies will push up prices.
Elsewhere, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is set to deliver remarks at a conference in Washington, D.C. Last week, the Fed left interest rates unchanged, with Powell noting strength in the broader economy but rising risks from inflation and unemployment.
Walmart earnings in spotlight
The main corporate release Thursday comes from retail giant Walmart (NYSE:WMT) before the start of U.S. trading.
A big-box giant known for its low prices and massive selections, Walmart has become something of a bellwether for shopper sentiment. In February, the company issued downbeat guidance for the year, although CFO John David Rainey said American consumers remain “resilient” and focused on value.
Elsewhere, quarterly returns are expected from Chinese e-commerce titan Alibaba (NYSE:BABA) and agricultural equipment manufacturer Deere & Company (NYSE:DE).
UnitedHealth (NYSE:UNH) stock slumped in premarket trading after the Wall Street Journal reported the company was being investigated by the Department of Justice over alleged criminal fraud involving Medicare.
The investigation marks a new headwind for UnitedHealth, which is already nursing a sharp selldown in its shares this year on concerns over government scrutiny, weakening financials, and signs of internal strife. The company abruptly replaced its CEO this week.
UnitedHealth shares are trading down nearly 39% so far in 2025.
Foot Locker (NYSE:FL) stock soared premarket after the Wall Street Journal reported that Dick’s Sporting Goods (F:DKS) is closing in on a deal to buy the company for roughly $2.3 billion.
Crude slumped on Iran nuclear deal talk
Oil prices fell sharply Thursday, extending recent losses, as the growing expectations for a potential U.S.-Iran nuclear deal added to demand concerns following a surprise build in U.S. inventories.
At 05:50 ET, Brent futures dropped 3.7% to $63.63 a barrel, and U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures fell 4% to $60.61 a barrel.
Both benchmarks lost just under 1% on Wednesday, ending a four-day rally and slipping from the two-week high reached earlier this week.
A U.S.-Iran nuclear deal could potentially allow Tehran to export more of its crude into the world market, loosening the global crude supply-demand balance.
Additionally, data from the Energy Information Administration showed crude stockpiles rose by 3.5 million barrels in the week ended May 9, suggesting that demand may be cooling in the world’s largest energy consumer.
Yesterday’s broader market action (based on the $QQQ tech index) looks to show the bulls are becoming slightly exhausted, or they are just preparing for the mountain of economic data releases coming out today alongside a speech from Powell this afternoon. We still have a gap on the daily chart from ~501.5 down to 492.7, which could opportunistically be filed in the coming days/week ahead if* bears a given any sort of negative catalyst whatsoever. So, it would be wise to anticipate the potential for a pullback in the near-term, especially if Powell says anything at all out of tone with the current euphoric state of the market, regardless of the tariff pause/reductions & trade deals in effect. However, if the bulls can manage to push us another 5% higher (not impossible), then we can possibly see new all-time highs in the not-so-distant future.
Today’s economic data releases are:
🇺🇸 IEA Monthly Report @ 4AM ET
🇺🇸 Retail Sales (Apr) @ 8:30AM ET
🇺🇸 Core Retail Sales (Apr) @ 8:30AM ET
🇺🇸 PPI (Apr) @ 8:30AM ET
🇺🇸 Philadelphia Fed Mfg. Index (May) @ 8:30AM ET
🇺🇸 Initial Jobless Claims @ 8:30AM ET
🇺🇸 Retail Control (Apr) @ 8:30AM ET
🇺🇸 Core PPI (Apr) @ 8:30AM ET
🇺🇸 Philly Fed Employment (May) @ 8:30AM ET
🇺🇸 NY Empire State Mfg. Index (May) @ 8:30AM ET
🇺🇸 Continuing Jobless Claims @ 8:30AM ET
🇺🇸 Fed Chair Powell Speaks @ 8:40AM ET
🇺🇸 Industrial Production (Apr) @ 9:15AM ET
🇺🇸 Retail Inventories Ex Auto (Mar) @ 10AM ET
🇺🇸 Business Inventories (Mar) @ 10AM ET
🇺🇸 Atlanta Fed GDPNow (Q2) @ 1PM ET
🇺🇸 Fed Supervision Vice Chair Barr Speaks @ 2:05PM ET
🇺🇸 Fed’s Balance Sheet @ 4:30PM ET
See you all in chat
If you want to get the plays of the day then signup for Gold, and get a FREE TRIALIf you want to get the plays of the day then signup for Gold, and get a FREE TRIAL
Responses