FOX: Wall Street Preps for Lower Open Amid Rate-Hike Fears
U.S. equity markets looked to wrap up a volatile month on a down note as worries over China and no clarity on when the Fed is likely to raise rates are weighing on sentiment.
As of 8:00 a.m. ET, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were 113 points lower, or 0.68% to 16547. S&P 500 futures slumped 13 points, or 0.67% to 1976, while Nasdaq 100 futures lost 22 points, or 0.51% to 4310.
Today’s Markets
Wall Street prepped for a lower open on Monday as investors continued to fret about what kind of future impact Chinese weakness will have on global markets, and when the Federal Reserve is most likely to begin hiking short-term interest rates from historic lows.
Over the weekend, investors around the globe digested comments from top Fed officials at the annual Jackson Hole retreat in Wyoming. On Saturday, Vice Chairman Stanley Fischer said the central bank doesn’t necessarily have to wait until 2% inflation is reached before beginning the tightening cycle, adding there’s a “pretty strong case” for beginning to hike rates in September.
Fischer’s comments come after a tumultuous week for the global markets, one in which Wall Street saw exceptionally volatile swings, and even kicked off the prior trading week with the Dow plunging 1,089 points. In the midst of the turmoil, many on the Street pushed back their rate-hike forecasts – with some even expecting the Fed to delay raising rates until March.
Leading up to the central bank’s September 16-17 meeting, all eyes will be closely watching economic data releases in the U.S., culminating with Friday’s August jobs report, for hints about the economy’s ability to handle higher interest rates. On Monday, traders were set for the latest snapshot of Midwest manufacturing data from the Institute for Supply Management-Chicago due at 9:45 a.m.
Elsewhere, traders continued to keep a close eye on developments in China where market instability last week caused near panic in global financial markets.
Asia markets were mixed at the closing bell. China’s Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.82% for the day, capping the month down a whopping 12.49%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 0.15%, ending the month down 11.94%, while the Nikkei declined 1.28% and ending August down 8.23%.
A similar pattern played out across European markets. The Euro Stoxx 50, which tracks large-cap companies in the eurozone declined 0.54%. The German Dax fell 0.55%, while the French CAC 40 declined 0.63%, and the UK’s FTSE 100 saw a 0.90% upswing.
In commodities, after rallying at the end of last week, global oil prices resumed their downward slide. U.S. crude shed 1.81% to $44.39 a barrel. Brent, the international benchmark, declined 2.20% to $48.95 a barrel.
Gold also saw red as it slid 0.28% to $1,130 a troy ounce, while silver paced 0.10% lower to $14.53 an ounce. Copper declined 1.32% to $2.32 a pound.
In currencies, the euro gained 0.20% against the U.S. dollar. Meanwhile, the yield on the U.S. 10-year Treasury bond fell 0.025 percentage point to 2.159%.
