Stocks gained on Wednesday ahead of the Federal Reserve’s interest rate announcement at 2 p.m., which will be followed by Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s news conference at 2:30 p.m. Futures tied to the S&P 500, Nasdaq 100 and Dow Jones indexes all rose slightly as of 7:25 a.m.
The Fed will probably keep interest rates on hold, with investors focused on board members’ rate expectations — the so-called dot plot — and on the central bank’s revised economic forecasts, observers said. Powell’s comments will also be scrutinized.
While the Fed governors are expected to keep the key rate at 4.5%, they may opt to pause — or signal a possible pause in May of — quantitative tightening (QT), the sale of financial assets from its balance sheet, economists said.
The U.S. economy is definitely softening, but economists are divided as to the direction of inflation and policy, with some projecting three rate cuts starting as soon as the current meeting — which would be a surprise — and others seeing policymakers staying put for longer as prices remain sticky.
Here are some stocks to watch today:
Autodesk
Autodesk’s (ADSK) shares gained about 1.2% before the opening bell after the Wall Street Journal reported that activist investor Starboard Value plans to start a proxy fight atthe design-software company.
General Mills
General Mills (GIS) stock fell 3.8% in premarket trading after the food company’s quarterly revenue fell short of expectations and it cut its sales forecast for the year.
Gilead and GSK
Gilead’s (GILD) stock and GSK’s (GSK) U.S.-listed shares both fell more than 2% before the open after Politico reported that the Trump administration is considering cutting spending on domestic HIV prevention.
Nvidia
Nvidia (NVDA) shares gained 1% premarket after Tuesday’s 3.4% decline. The chipmaker’s AI conference in San Jose continues Wednesday. The keynote address Tuesday by CEO Jensen Huang failed to wow investors amid a tech-stock selldown, despite his announcement that the company will team up with GM (GM) to build self-driving cars. Here’s a roundup from the speech.
Tencent
Tencent’s (TCEHY) ADRs edged higher in pre-opening trade after the Chinese internet giant’s sales and profit both beat and it announced increased investment on AI.
Tesla and BYD
Tesla (TSLA) stock gained 3.1% before the bell after it gained a permit in California to operate a ride service. Elon Musk’s EV maker fell 5.3% Tuesday and has plunged 36% over the past month — and by more than half from its all-time high in mid-December. This week, RBC (RY) cut its price target for the shares and BYD (BYDDY) unveiled an ultra-fast charger — amid growing signs that Chinese EV makers are motoring ahead. BYD’s Hong Kong listed shares gained again on Wednesday, rising 3.9%.
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