By Barbara Kollmeyer, MarketWatch
Upbeat eurozone data pushes euro closer to $1.10
MADRID (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stock futures got a slight boost on
Tuesday from slack in a dollar that has been pulling from a
rip-roaring run-up, though stock gains were modest as investors
await a raft of economic reports, including gauges of new-home
sales and inflation.
Stock futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average (YMM5) rose
39 points to 18,053, while those for the S&P 500 index (ESM5)
added 2.95 points to 2,097.75. Futures for the Nasdaq-100 index
(NQM5) rose 7.5 points to 4,444.25.
U.S. stocks finished slightly lower on Monday
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-stocks-futures-pull-back-with-fed-speakers-home-sales-in-view-2015-03-23),
erasing modest gains in the last 15 minutes of trade. slightly.
But weakness for the dollar (EURUSD) , driven by upbeat data out
of Europe--the German purchasing managers index jumping to an
eight-month high at 52.4, beating forecasts--supported stock
futures. European stocks were moderately higher.
The upbeat news out of Germany acted as a counterbalance to a
report on Chinese factory activity, which showed a drop to an
11-month low, according to preliminary HSBC numbers. The data was
much weaker than expected, and they weighed on crude prices and
Asia stocks.
All eyes on CPI: Wall Street stocks finished slightly lower on
Monday
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-stocks-futures-pull-back-with-fed-speakers-home-sales-in-view-2015-03-23),
erasing modest gains late in the trading day, and direction for
Tuesday was still tough to call, especially as investors waited for
a cluster of U.S. data.
February consumer prices are coming at 8:30 a.m. Eastern time.
Headline prices are expected to rise 0.2%, from a 0.7% drop in
January, while core prices are seen up 0.1% from a 0.2% gain in
January.
"Whatever the outcome, it looks like deflation is likely to be a
feature for the U.S. -- for, say, the next 6 months -- so it'll be
interesting to see whether the prospects of a 2015 Fed hike can
coexist with such a scenario," said Jim Reid, strategist at
Deutsche Bank, in a note.
At 9 a.m. Eastern, the Federal Housing Finance Agency home price
index for January is due, while the Markit flash manufacturing PMI
is scheduled for release at 9:45 a.m. Eastern. New home sales for
February are coming at 10 a.m. Eastern.
St. Louis Fed President James Bullard will speak in London on
the future of international monetary policy and its impact on the
global economic recovery at 6 a.m. Eastern.
Stocks to Watch: Whiting Petroleum Corp.(WLL) shares were off
14% after the oil and gas company announced a secondary stock
offering.
McCormick & Co.(MKC) will release results ahead of the
market's open.
Chesapeake Energy Corp.(CHK) rose 3.6%. The company cut its
outlook for 2015 capital expenditure
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/chesapeake-energy-cuts-2015-capex-production-outlook-2015-03-23)
due to continued weak commodity prices.
Other markets:Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/japanese-hong-kong-stocks-retreat-after-weak-chinese-data-2015-03-24)
fell after the Chinese factory data, while Japan's Nikkei broke a
two-day winning streak with a 0.2% fall.
Oil prices (CLK5) shook off earlier losses to push higher, with
U.S. May crude up 25 cents to $47.70 a barrel, though investors are
watching for supply data due later. Gold (GCK5) was also rising as
the dollar weakened.
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