(Bloomberg) — U.S. equity-index futures struggled for direction on Friday as investors weighed prospects for economic growth against lingering inflation concerns. Treasury yields rose and the dollar gained.
S&P 500 futures fluctuated, while contracts on the Nasdaq 100 edged lower as factory-price data from China spurred new concerns over global inflation despite Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s promise of a U.S. recovery without surging prices. American producer-price data later Friday may provide further clues on the outlook.
The Stoxx Europe 600 index was flat, on course for a sixth straight week of gains, the longest run since November 2019. Bond yields ticked higher across the euro region.
Fed officials have stressed that the U.S. economy continues to need aggressive policy support as it recovers from the pandemic, even as the outlook brightens amid widening vaccinations. Powell said Thursday that policy makers would react if inflation expectations started “moving persistently and materially” above tolerable levels. Despite the strength of some indicators, the recovery remains incomplete, as reflected in the latest unexpectedly high U.S. jobless claims.
“A lot of investors are worried about the stock-market highs, but that doesn’t mean it can’t get higher, and the economic conditions are certainly set up for a positive equity environment,” said Xi Qiao, managing director at UBS Global Wealth Management, on Bloomberg TV.
More than 704 million shots have been administered worldwide, but uncertainty over risks associated with the AstraZeneca vaccine has slowed the process in some countries. Germany and France, the euro area’s two largest economies, both saw unexpected declines in industrial production in February, suggesting that coronavirus restrictions are increasingly harming parts of the economy that have proved resilient so far.
Oil fluctuated below $60 a barrel as Saudi Arabia defended the OPEC+ plan to boost output, and said the alliance can change course if needed.
These are some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
S&P 500 futures rose lessw than 0.1% as of 9:10 a.m. in London. The S&P 500 closed 0.4% higher.Nasdaq 100 futures slid 0.1% after the index gained 1%.The Stoxx Europe 600 index was little changed.The MSCI Asia Pacific Index dropped 0.4%.The MSCI Emerging Markets Index fell 0.6%.
Currencies
The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.2%.The euro slipped 0.2% to $1.1894.The British pound weakened 0.3% to $1.3698.The Japanese yen traded at 109.54 per dollar, down 0.3%.
Bonds
The yield on 10-year Treasuries rose five basis points to 1.67%.Germany’s 10-year yield climbed three basis points to -0.31%.The U.K. 10-year yield rose four basis points to 0.79%.
Commodities
West Texas Intermediate crude slipped 0.3% to $59.40 a barrel.Gold was 0.5% lower at about $1,747 an ounce.
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