On this post-Super Bowl Monday, markets are kicking things off by...doing not much of anything.
Stocks are looking to start the day flat, along with Treasuries. Gold, silver, and oil are all a bit lower, while the dollar is stable. Traders are eagerly awaiting tomorrow’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) report to see what the Federal Reserve will do next. The headline inflation gauge is expected to rise 0.5% month-over-month, while the core (ex-food and energy) reading is forecast to increase 0.4%.
As for the longer term, the Federal Reserve’s message about interest rates staying “higher for longer” appears to be sinking in. Futures markets are now pricing in a higher potential peak for rates in this Fed-hiking cycle than they were a few months ago, as well as pricing in fewer cuts for later in 2023.
Shifting to the news, the Kansas City Chiefs beat the Philadelphia Eagles 38-35 in a pretty exciting NFL championship game. Of course, if you believe in the “Super Bowl Indicator,” this is bad news for stocks. That’s because when an AFC team like the Chiefs win, it’s supposedly bearish for the market.
U.S. fighter jets shot down the fourth flying object in the last few days over Lake Huron yesterday (No word yet on whether aliens were involved). But in all seriousness, China pushed back against the first of the U.S. actions. The country said the U.S. has flown balloons over its territory more than 10 times in the last 14 months.
