U.S. futures have been inching higher into the open with investors being swayed by some upbeat earnings reports. The S&P 500 futures trade six points, or 0.2%, above fair value.
Bank of America (BAC 27.94, +1.39, +5.2%) and Goldman Sachs (GS 186.00, +6.09, +3.4%), for instance, exceeded top and bottom-line consensus estimates for the fourth quarter. United Continental (UAL 86.00, +4.80, +5.9%) for its part did, too.
U.S. Treasuries are lower, pushing yields higher. The 2-yr yield is up three basis points to 2.55%, and the 10-yr yield is up two basis points to 2.73%. The U.S. Dollar Index is up 0.1% to 96.06. WTI crude, meanwhile, is down 1.0% to $51.59/bbl.
Reviewing this morning's economic data, which included the weekly MBA Mortgage Applications Index and Import and Export Prices for December:
The weekly MBA Mortgage Applications Index rose 13.5% versus last week's increase of 23.5%.
Import prices declined 1.0% month-over-month and were down 0.6% year-over-year. Excluding fuel, they were unchanged in December and up just 0.5% year-over-year. Export prices declined 0.6% and were up 1.1% year-over-year. Excluding agricultural products, they were down 1.1% in December and up 1.0% year-over-year.
The key takeaway from the report is that it didn't ring any inflation alarm bells that would compel the Fed to be less patient with its monetary policy approach.
As a reminder, NAHB Housing Market Index for January will be released at 10:00 a.m. ET, the Fed's Beige Book for January will be released at 2:00 p.m. ET, and Net Long-Term TIC Flows for November will be released at 4:00 p.m. ET.
AI
