US stock futures dip as investors look toward key inflation data, while bitcoin jumps above $42,000
- US stock futures dipped after wavering Monday, as traders looked to inflation data due later this week.
- Meanwhile, bitcoin jumped above $42,000, boosted by general optimism in the markets after a strong week for stocks.
US stock futures slipped Monday after the major indexes posted a solid gain the previous week, with investors looking towards key inflation data due Thursday.
Meanwhile, bitcoin jumped above $42,000, boosted by general optimism in the markets after the strong week for stocks.
S&P 500 futures were down 0.19%, Dow Jones futures were 0.23% lower, and Nasdaq 100 futures had fallen 0.16% as of 5.25 a.m. ET. All three contracts had traded in the green during the Asian session.
It's been a highly volatile start to the year for US and global stocks, with investors bracing for the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates as it tries to tackle surging inflation.
The S&P 500 rallied 1.6% across the week despite some wild moves in individual stocks, such as Facebook parent Meta plunging 26% Thursday after underwhelming investors with weak earnings.
A stronger-than-expected employment report added to optimism about the economy Friday, with 467,000 jobs being added in January. However, it also raised fears that the Fed could hike faster than previously anticipated.
US CPI inflation data for January is due to be released Thursday morning. It's expected to show that prices rose 7.3% over the last year, according to analysts polled by Bloomberg. That would set a new 39-year high for inflation.
"These readings are only likely to reinforce the Fed's decision to raise interest rates as early as March," Naeem Aslam, chief market analyst at AvaTrade, said in a note.
European stocks struggled for direction Monday. The continent-wide Stoxx 600 was roughly flat, and London's FTSE 100 traded 0.23% higher.
China's CSI 300 index rose 1.54% after reopening after a break for the Lunar New Year holiday. Tokyo's Nikkei 225 fell 0.7%, however.
US bond yields flatlined after rising sharply Friday following the strong monthly jobs report, as traders upped their bets on the number of Fed rate hikes this year to price in five increases.
The yield on the key 10-year US Treasury note, which moves inversely to the price, stood at 1.911% Monday.
Elsewhere in markets, bitcoin rallied over the weekend to top $40,000 for the first time since the middle of January. was up 1.88% to $42,472 Monday, according to Bloomberg prices.
The world's oldest cryptocurrency has been trading in line with risky assets such as technology stocks over the last few months, and it benefitted from the more upbeat mood among investors that settled in on Friday.
Oil prices fell slightly after a long run of gains. WTI crude was down 1.52% to $90.97 a barrel, and Brent crude was 1% lower at $92.35 a barrel.