Futures pull back as focus turns from election to economic data

(Reuters) – U.S. stock index futures dipped on Tuesday after Wall Street’s rally over the past few days following election results as traders awaited key inflation data later in the week for more signals on the country’s economic and monetary policy outlook.

The three major indexes notched record high closes in the previous session as investors broadly expect President-elect Donald Trump’s proposed tax cuts and expectations of easier regulatory policies to help equities.

Some of the stocks expected to perform well under Trump’s presidency gave back gains. EV maker Tesla, which has soared nearly 40% since Nov. 5, fell 5% in premarket trading.

Futures tracking the small-cap Russell 2000 fell 0.8% after the index closed at a three-year high on Monday. Trump Media & Technology Group lost 6.7%.

Some crypto stocks eased after gaining in the past few sessions, even as bitcoin neared the $90,000 mark. Coinbase Global fell 7.2%, and bitcoin miners MARA Holdings and Riot Platforms dipped 6.5% and 6.8%, respectively.

Focus will now be on Wednesday’s release of consumer price inflation data, the first of several releases this week that will provide direction to the U.S. Federal Reserve’s policy path.

Markets have already dialed back expectations for interest rate reductions over the next year, given strong economic data and the possible inflationary impact of some of Trump’s policies.

Traders are still pricing in a strong chance – nearly 69% – of a 25 basis point interest rate cut at the Fed’s December meeting, according to CME FedWatch.

“We currently expect the Fed to enact another quarter-point rate reduction in December, this view is subject to decent readings on inflation between now and Dec. 18,” said John Velis, Americas macro strategist at BNY.

“December’s meeting will be the last meeting before the new administration assumes office, after which economic policy could radically alter the inflation and growth landscape, setting up a new set of calculations for the FOMC.”

Fed officials Christopher Waller, Thomas Barkin, Neel Kashkari and Patrick Harker are expected to speak later in the day.

Dow E-minis were down 72 points, or 0.16%, S&P 500 E-minis were down 15 points, or 0.25%, and Nasdaq 100 E-minis were down 66.5 points, or 0.31%.

Megacap technology stocks lost ground, with Nvidia down 1.2%, Alphabet losing 0.5% and Meta Platforms falling 0.4%.

Investors were also eyeing the possibility of a “Red Sweep” with one data provider projecting the Republican Party had won a majority in the U.S. House of Representatives, which would signal that Republicans would hold a majority in both chambers of Congress.

(Reporting by Lisa Mattackal in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta)