U.S. Stocks Opened Mixed After Another Round of Hawkish Messages from Fed policymakers

Barry Adams
28 May, 2024
New York City

Stocks in early trading on Wall Street inched higher as investors looked ahead to the release of inflation data later in the week. 

Market sentiment was subdued after Minneapolis Fed President Neal Kashkari said that policymakers will like to see sustained slowdown in inflation for several months before interest rates could be lowered. 

Market sentiment was subdued after Minneapolis Fed President Neal Kashkari said that policymakers would like to see a sustained slowdown in inflation for several months before interest rates could be lowered. 

Kashkari's comments echo comments from other participants in the rate-setting committee and minutes from the latest policy meeting. 

“Many more months of positive inflation data, I think, to give me confidence that it’s appropriate to dial back,” Kashkari said in an interview with the CNBC. 

Kashkari is not a voting member of the rate-setting committee in 2024, but he does participate in the policy decision. 

Kashkari said that the Federal Reserve could potentially hike interest rates if inflation fails to weaken further in the coming months. 

Tech stocks advanced after investors returned from a 3-day weekend amid ongoing interest rate jitters and worries of a consumer pullback. 

The S&P 500 index inched higher by 0.1% and the Nasdaq Composite advanced by 0.2%. 

This month, the S&P 500 index has advanced more than 5% and the Nasdaq Composite has gained about 8%, and the two popular market indexes are set to extend gains in this holiday-shortened week of trading. 

Investors are looking forward to the release of the persona income and outlay report, which includes the persona consumption expenditure index, on Friday. 

The PCE index, the preferred measure of inflation by Federal Reserve policymakers, is likely to provide fresh insights into the inflationary forces and how consumers are adjusting to the sustained increase in prices of food, fuel, and shelter. 

 

U.S. Indexes and Treasury Yields

The S&P 500 index rose 0.1% to 5,322.24, and the Nasdaq Composite jumped 0.2% to 16,952.80. 

The yield on 2-year Treasury notes edged lower to 4.93%, 10-year Treasury notes decreased to 4.46%, and 30-year Treasury bonds edged lower to 4.55%.

WTI crude oil increased $0.57 to $79.77 a barrel, and natural gas prices advanced 2 cents to $2.53 a thermal unit.

Gold increased by $1.53 to $2,353.84 an ounce, and silver rose 7 cents to $31.53. 

The dollar index, which weighs the U.S. dollar against a basket of foreign currencies, edged lower to 104.36.

 

U.S. Stock Movers

GameStop jumped 21% to $23.30 after the specialty retailer said it raised $933.4 million through the sale of 45 million in a secondary offering. 

United States Cellular Corp. jumped 10.3% to $47.50 after the wireless services provider agreed to be acquired by T-Mobile. 

Deutsche Telekom-controlled T-Mobile agreed to pay $4.4 billion for the wireless operation of U.S. Cellular and 30% of its wireless spectrum assets. 

The deal is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2025, and T-Mobile will also enter into a new licensing agreement on more than 2,000 towers.