By Medha Singh
(Reuters) – Futures tracking the S&P 500 and the Dow ticked higher on Tuesday ahead of data that is likely to show an uptick in inflation in a sign that the economic rebound is gathering steam.
The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield inched closer to 1.7% before the Labor Department’s data that is expected to show U.S. consumer prices rose 0.5% in March from 0.4% in February. The report is due at 8:30 a.m. ET (1230 GMT).
A steady retreat in bond yields since the start of this month on expectations that a spike in inflation this year would be transitory has revived demand for high-growth tech stocks and sent the S&P 500 and the Dow to record highs.
Investors are also marking time ahead of the start of the first-quarter earnings season, with results from Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan and Wells Fargo on deck on Wednesday.
Analysts expect earnings for S&P 500 firms to jump 25% from a year ago, driven by strength in consumer discretionary and financial companies, according to Refinitiv IBES data.
At 6:06 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were up 51 points, or 0.15%, S&P 500 E-minis were up 4 points, or 0.1% and Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 3.25 points, or 0.02%.
Among stocks, U.S.-listed shares of e-commerce firm JD.com and search giant Baidu fell about 2% each in premarket trading as China’s market regulator warned internet companies to stop using any banned practices.
Cryptocurrency and blockchain-related firms including Riot Blockchain and Marathon Digital Holdings jumped 9% and 8% as bitcoin prices soared 4.5%, a day ahead of listing of Coinbase, the largest U.S. cryptocurrency exchange.
(Reporting by Medha Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)
