U.S. Futures remain volatile this morning, as U.S. debt ceiling negotiations are set to resume today between President Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. Even so, markets remain hopeful as Washington has always reached a deal in the past, to avert similar debt ceiling concerns. Futures on the Nasdaq 100 (NDX) are up 0.03%, while those on the S&P 500 (SPX) and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) are down by 0.07% and 0.10%, respectively, at 4:15 a.m. EST, May 22.
The President returned from the G-7 Summit held in Hiroshima over the weekend and reaffirmed his stance on de-risking and diversifying the country’s relations with China. At the same time, the trade war between both nations escalates as Beijing banned its key infrastructure operators from buying products from U.S. chipmaker Micron (NASDAQ:MU), citing severe network security risks.
Notably, the week will be marked by speeches from several Federal Reserve officials and the latest FOMC meeting minutes scheduled for May 24. Traders will keenly watch the details to see if officials give any cue on future monetary policy. Meanwhile, Fed Chair Powell stated in his speech on Friday that the Fed is very unlikely to raise interest rates in the next meeting. The pressure from the recent banking crisis has led to tighter credit conditions, adding the required stress on “economic growth, hiring, and inflation,” he added. Accordingly, interest rates won’t need to rise as much as were previously expected.
On the earnings front, Israel-based shipping liner ZIM Integrated (NYSE:ZIM) and video telepathy platform Zoom Video Communications (NASDAQ:ZM) will report today.
Elsewhere, European indices are also trading mixed today as traders await the negotiations on the U.S. debt ceiling to take shape.
Asia-Pacific Markets End in the Green
Most Asia-Pacific indices ended the trading session in the green, as Chinese stocks rose on the news of the ban on Micron’s products. Also, progress on U.S. debt ceiling negotiations keeps traders optimistic.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng, China’s Shanghai Composite, and Shenzhen Component indices ended the trading session up 1.17%, 0.39%, and 0.32% respectively. Further, the People Bank of China kept prime lending rates unchanged for the 1 Year and 5 Year loans.
At the same time, both of Japan’s major indices touched an all-year high, ending the trading session in the green. Nikkei and Topix ended up 0.90% and 0.66% respectively.
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