US stock futures drift higher with inflation, earnings in focus

Investing.com– U.S. stock index futures rose slightly in evening deals on Sunday as sentiment remained upbeat after strong payrolls data from last week, with focus turning to more cues on  interest rates and corporate earning in the coming days. 

Wall Street rose sharply on Friday after stronger-than-expected data helped abate concerns over a slowing U.S. economy. But the reading also quashed expectations over steep interest rate cuts in the coming months.

rose 0.1% to 5,804.50 points, while rose 0.1% to 20,245.50 points by 19:34 ET (23:34 GMT). rose 0.1% to 5,751.07 points. 

Fed comments, CPI inflation on tap

Focus this week was squarely on more signals from the Fed, with a slew of officials set to speak in the coming days. Rate-setting committee members and are set to speak later on Monday, as is .

Their addresses come before the , which are due on Wednesday. The Fed had cut rates by 50 bps during the meeting and marked the start of an easing cycle.

inflation data for September is due later this week, and is likely to factor into expectations for the path of U.S. interest rates.

This week’s cues come after stronger-than-expected nonfarm payrolls data on Friday wiped out expectations for a 50 basis point rate cut in November, with traders now betting that the Fed will slow its pace of rate cuts after a 50 bps reduction in September, showed. 

Traders were also seen pricing in a higher terminal rate. While Wall Street gained on signs of resilience in the U.S. economy, higher rates are expected to limit this upside in the coming months. 

The rose 0.9% on Friday to 5,751.07 points, staying close to record highs. The rose 0.8% to a record high of 42,352.75 points, while the rose 1.2% to 18,137.85 points. 

Banks set to kick off Q3 earnings season 

Focus this week is also on the start of the third-quarter earnings season, with major banks JPMorgan Chase & Co (NYSE:), Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:) and Bank of New York Mellon (NYSE:) set to report quarterly earnings on Friday. 

Markets will be watching to gauge whether corporate earnings persevered against pressure from high interest rates and sticky inflation. 

Earnings are set to pick up pace next week, with more key bank and tech earnings due in the coming days.