U.S. stock index futures edged lower on Thursday ahead of monthly producer prices data that could offer clues on how long the Federal Reserve will have to keep raising interest rates to tame stubbornly high inflation.
Producer prices are expected to have climbed by 0.4% in January, on a month-on-month basis, according to a Reuters poll of economists, following a 0.4% fall in the previous month.
However, the numbers are expected to have cooled to 5.4% on an annual basis, after a 6.2% increase in December.
After a torrid 2022, the main stock indexes have climbed this year on the back of upbeat earnings and expectations that the U.S. central bank will switch to smaller rate hikes, pushing investors to scoop up beaten-down growth stocks.
However, signs of a resilient economy and an acceleration in January consumer prices have recently raised concerns among traders that the central bank may not hit pause on its hawkish policies anytime soon, let alone pivot to cutting rates later this year.
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