Stock market today: Stock futures inch higher as Wall Street looks to wrap up high-flying Q2

U.S. stock futures traded mixed early Monday, marking the start of the final week of another successful quarter on Wall Street.

Futures linked to the S&P 500 benchmark index (^GSPC) were up about 0.1%, while those of the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) hovered just below the flat line. Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) futures rose 0.3%.

The shares are hoping to add some flavor to what has been a high-flying quarter so far. The S&P 500 is up about 4.5% this quarter, and the Nasdaq is up about 8% for the quarter. at the back of an AI-driven rally.

This rally, however, showed signs of fatigue and ended last week. NVIDIA (NVDA), so far the darling of Wall Street in 2024, lost ground after hitting new all-time highs towards the end of the week. Those losses looked set to continue early Monday, with the stock down about 2% in premarket trading.

The macroeconomic front, as well as the renewed focus on the US political scene, could attract more attention this week. On this last point, US President Joe Biden and presumptive Republican candidate Donald Trump are expected to hold their first debate on Thursday evening. Ben Werschkul of Yahoo Finance has a good primer on what to watch from an American economic perspective.

And then: inflation. The personal consumption expenditure (PCE) index will be released Friday morning. This index contains the “core” PCE measure, which is most closely monitored by the Federal Reserve.

Economists expect core PCE to rise just 0.1% last month, which would constitute the slowest monthly increase since last November. Such a release would add to a string of recent positive data that could ease Fed policymakers’ concerns about rate cuts this year. Traders expect the Fed to begin cutting interest rates in September, according to the CME FedWatch tool.