Stock futures little changed after Fed signals imminent rate cut

Stock futures were little changed on Sunday as investors looked to push stocks back toward record highs amid the Federal Reserve’s hint of an imminent rate cut.

S&P 500 futures fell 0.1%, while Nasdaq 100 futures fell 0.1%. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures fell 16 points, or 0.04%.

Stocks had a strong week last week after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell signaled an imminent rate cut. Wall Street had been anxiously awaiting a rate cut, especially given that some worrisome economic data sparked a sell-off in early August as investors worried that higher borrowing costs could hurt the U.S. economy.

But stocks have since rebounded and are now hovering near all-time highs. The benchmark S&P 500 index closed Friday within 1% of its all-time high set in mid-July. The rebound has extended to the broader market, with the small-cap Russell 2000 index rising 3% after Powell’s speech.

“(Powell’s comments) provide a tailwind for the market into year-end, making a retest of this month’s lows less likely,” said David Russell, global head of market strategy at TradeStation.

To be sure, Powell did not say when or by how much the rate cut would happen. Still, traders are unanimous in predicting a rate cut at the Fed’s September policy meeting, according to forecasts from the Chicago Mercantile Exchange Group. Fed Watch Tool.

On the economic front, initial jobless claims will be released at 8:30 a.m. Thursday and personal consumption expenditures data for July will be released on Friday.