U.S. stock futures were steady at the start of trading this week, after the Nasdaq Composite Index hit a record high on Friday, breaking the record for 2021, and as stocks try to extend their weeks-long rally.
Futures tied to the S&P 500 Index were down marginally, while futures tied to the Nasdaq-100 Index were up slightly. Futures tied to the 30-stock Dow Jones Index were down 26 points, or 0.1%.
Last week, the Nasdaq rose to an all-time high on Friday, March 1, surpassing the 2021 record high, as investors bet that big tech stocks were the best way to deal with slowing inflation and the coming artificial intelligence boom.
On a weekly basis, the Nasdaq rose 1.74%, while the S&P 500, which also hit a record high on Thursday, advanced 0.95%.
Both indexes notched their seventh positive week in the past eight, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average bucked the trend, falling 0.11%.
Enthusiasm over artificial intelligence has lifted tech stocks, while slowing inflation and the Fed’s subsequent shift toward expected interest rate cuts later in 2024 have helped the Nasdaq rebound.
With markets digesting a better-than-expected earnings season and a stronger-than-expected CPI report, investors are now turning their attention back to inflation.
Investors will be looking this week for clues on the future direction of interest rates from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell's policy updates to the House of Representatives on Wednesday and to the Senate on Thursday.
The ADP employment survey and job openings data for January will also be released on Wednesday, providing further insight into the labor market. Manufacturing and nonfarm payrolls data for February will be released next Friday.
Data released Thursday showed the personal consumption expenditures price index, excluding food and energy, the Federal Reserve's preferred measure, rose 0.4% in January, in line with expectations.
