Futures rise after CPI-powered rally, Walmart to report

Investing.com — U.S. stock futures edge up, suggesting an extension to a rally on Wall Street that was sparked by data showing a slowdown in inflation last month. Wagers that the Federal Reserve could roll out two interest rate reductions this year were bolstered by the report, although analysts noted that the central bank will likely need to see more proof that price growth is easing back down to its target level. Elsewhere, low-cost big-box chain Walmart (NYSE:) is due to deliver its latest quarterly results on Thursday, while Chubb’s shares spike in extended hours trading after Warren Buffett’s Berkshire reveals a stake in the insurer.

1. Futures higher

U.S. stock futures pointed higher on Thursday after equities surged to a record high in the prior session following a mild monthly inflation report.

By 03:33 ET (07:33 GMT), the contract had gained 37 points or 0.1%, had risen by 5 points or 0.1%, and had climbed by 34 points or 0.2%.

Data on Wednesday showed that consumer price growth had slowed as anticipated to 3.4% on an annualized basis in April, powering bets that the Federal Reserve will start to ratchet down interest rates from more than two decade highs later this year. Traders have now priced in two cuts in 2024, up from just one earlier this week.

Stocks soared in the wake of the report, with the benchmark rising by 1.2%, the tech-heavy adding 1.4%, and the 30-stock advancing 0.9%. The rate-sensitive 2-year U.S. Treasury yield, which typically moves inversely to prices, temporarily touched its lowest mark since early April, while the dollar weakened to multi-week lows against its peers.

2. Bitcoin rises amid U.S. dollar slide

 rose on Thursday, boosted by the slide in the dollar, although the token was comfortably rangebound as sentiment towards crypto remained subdued.

The world’s biggest cryptocurrency climbed 6.7% in the past 24 hours to $66,159.0 by 03:34 ET. The token had pushed as high as $66,600, before losing some momentum. It had dipped as low as $60,000 earlier this week.

Analysts flagged that the year-on-year pace of inflation still hovered well above the Fed’s 2% target level, while a slew of officials at the central bank have warned recently that they will need much more confidence that prices are sustainably easing before trimming rates.

This notion limited any major gains in Bitcoin, keeping the token trading comfortably…