Before the bell: Futures edge lower ahead of inflation data

Posted Nov 17th 2009 7:45AM by Melly Alazraki
Filed under: Before the Bell, International Markets, Home Depot (HD), Market Matters, Economic Data, Housing

U.S. stock futures edged lower Tuesday morning following yet another strong rally on Monday. This morning, investors await some economic data due out before the opening bell, including an inflation gauge and a housing indicator. The housing market is further in focus with Home Depot's earnings report.

On Monday, stock markets closed about 1.4% higher across the board after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke didn't indicate a change in the Fed's policy any time soon to support the dollar. In fact, as the U.S. economy remains weak and unemployment keeps rising, the Fed will likely extend its low interest rate policy longer. He did mention the central bank policy will ensure that the "dollar is strong." The dollar edged higher from its 15-month lows following Bernanke's speech.

Several economic reports are due out this morning:

At 8:30 a.m. Eastern, the Bureau of Labor Statistics will release October's price produce index, or inflation at the wholessale level. The PPI is expected to have risen 0.5% for the month following a 0.6% decline in September, according to Briefing.com. The core PPI, which excludes the volatile food and energy prices, is expected to have edged up 0.1% in October after edging 0.1% lower the month before.
At 9:00 a.m., the Treasury will report on inflows and outflows.
At 9:25 a.m., the Federal Reserve will report on October's capacity utilization and industrial production. While the former is expected to have edged up, the latter is expected to have edged lower.
At 1 p.m. the NAHB's housing market index for November is due out.

In addition, a report from TransUnion agency shows the pace at which people fell behind on their mortgages slowed during the summer for the third consecutive quarter, but the overall delinquency rate hit another record.

Overseas, European and Asian stock markets fell modestly Tuesday despite U.S. stock market soaring. Meanwhile, oil prices hovered below $79 a barrel Tuesday as investors look to crude demand growth in Asia next year to offset a sluggish U.S. economy.

Among stocks in the news this morning, Home Depot (HD) caught the spotlight when it reported a 9% drop in third-quarter profit, but managed to beat estimates.

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