Traders are active on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange during afternoon trading on January 22, 2024 in New York City. The Dow Jones and S&P both hit all-time highs with the Dow Jones closing over 38,000 points for the first time ever as stocks continue to rise. Michael M. Santiago | Getty Images News | Getty ImagesU.S. stock futures were virtually unchanged Monday as Wall Street looked ahead to several mega-cap tech earnings reports and the Federal Reserve’s rate policy decision. Futures linked to the Dow Jones Industrial Average decreased by 27 points, or 0.1%. S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures edged up slightly.The three major averages all climbed last week following encouraging economic data. Economic growth in the fourth quarter surpassed expectations, while core inflation on a yearly basis was lower than anticipated, indicating a decrease in price increases. However, the market’s gains were more subdued compared to the previous week’s surge after prominent companies such as Intel and Tesla failed to meet earnings expectations. This week represents the busiest period of the earnings season, with 19% of the S&P 500 reporting earnings. Mega-cap tech giants Microsoft, Apple, Meta, Amazon, and Alphabet — part of the core group of major tech firms driving this year’s rally — will be announcing their results. Investors will also be monitoring several Dow components reporting their quarterly earnings, including Boeing and Merck.Meanwhile, the Federal Open Market Committee will commence its two-day policy meeting on Tuesday. Investors are almost certain the central bank will maintain rates at their current level. Traders in the fed funds futures market attributed an almost 97% likelihood that the Fed will not reduce rates at the upcoming meeting, according to the CME Group. Sonu Varghese, global macro strategist at Carson Group, stated “the Fed doesn’t really have to worry about a hot economy stoking inflation anymore, because we literally see the opposite. The economy is running above trend and inflation is coming down. Based on that, in terms of portfolio allocation, we’re overweight equities.”He further added that while the Fed will likely lower rates later this year, “and maybe lead to some capital appreciation, [it will] probably not be as much as the market is anticipating.”
