Wall St seen firming; Fed, data in spotlight
Enviado: 3/5/2004 11:45Wall St seen firming; Fed, data in spotlight
03/05/2004 11:20
LONDON, May 3 (Reuters) - U.S. shares were expected to open little changed on Monday as investors await a steer on interest rates from the Federal Reserve later this week and turn their attention to economic data as the earnings season winds down. Key for the markets this week will be a Fed monetary policy session on Tuesday, when the central bank is expected to lay the groundwork for a rise in interest rates, now at a 46 year low of one percent.
"There seems to be little doubt about it now that it is only a matter of time before the Fed locks in with higher rates, and no better time than the August FOMC (Federal Open Market Committee)," Bear Stearns economist David Brown said.
"There has been a swarm of stronger U.S. economic data to vindicate it, inflation risks are pressing upwards and the Fed has been intimating it for ages."
Friday´s non-farm payrolls will be closely watched for confirmation that a recovery seen elsewhere in the economy is finally taking hold in the labour market.
At 0956 GMT, U.S. stock futures were pointing to a slightly firmer open on the major indexes after closing down on Friday, capping a month of weakness in April.
Corporate results are slowing after what has so far been a strong first-quarter earnings season.
More than four-fifths of the S&P 500 companies have reported, with 76 percent of those topping consensus forecasts while only 12 percent have fallen short of expectations.
A year ago, 62 percent of companies beat forecasts, against 17 percent coming in below expectations.
Results due on Monday include MetLife , XL Capital and Masco Corp .
ANHEUSER-BUSCH, MICROSOFT
In corporate news, brewing giant Anheuser-Busch may be influenced by news it has bought a strategic stake in China´s fourth-largest brewer.
Analysts said Anheuser-Busch´s move to buy around 29 percent of Harbin Brewery could prompt a takeover battle with SABMiller , which also owns about 29 percent of Harbin, one of China´s oldest brewers.
Global software giant Microsoft Corp will be eyed after reporting that retail and new PC sales of its flagship Windows XP operating system had grown to more than 210 million copies since the product was launched two-and-a-half years ago.
Shares in KLA-Tencor Corp could fall after news on Friday that its president resigned and would take a leave of absence from the company for personal reasons.
Shares of KLA-Tencor, which makes semiconductor equipment, fell 1.7 percent on the INET electronic brokerage after the close on Friday.
The highlight of Monday´s data will be the Institute of Supply Management´s manufacturing gauge, which is expected to remain strong but largely unchanged for April, while construction spending is seen nudging up for March.
Economists polled by Reuters forecast the April ISM at 63, compared with March´s 62.5, while construction spending is forecast to show a gain of 0.5 percent after a decline of 0.1 percent the previous month. Investors will also be eyeing monthly U.S. auto sales data.
Markets in London are closed on Monday for a bank holiday, while in Japan, markets are closed until Thursday for "Golden Week" holidays.
((Reporting by Lincoln Feast
Editing by Edmund Klamann
Reuters Messaging:
rm://lincoln.feast.reuters.com@reuters.net
Email: lincoln.feast@reuters.com
Telephone: +44 20 7542 5880))
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European
03/05/2004 11:20
LONDON, May 3 (Reuters) - U.S. shares were expected to open little changed on Monday as investors await a steer on interest rates from the Federal Reserve later this week and turn their attention to economic data as the earnings season winds down. Key for the markets this week will be a Fed monetary policy session on Tuesday, when the central bank is expected to lay the groundwork for a rise in interest rates, now at a 46 year low of one percent.
"There seems to be little doubt about it now that it is only a matter of time before the Fed locks in with higher rates, and no better time than the August FOMC (Federal Open Market Committee)," Bear Stearns economist David Brown said.
"There has been a swarm of stronger U.S. economic data to vindicate it, inflation risks are pressing upwards and the Fed has been intimating it for ages."
Friday´s non-farm payrolls will be closely watched for confirmation that a recovery seen elsewhere in the economy is finally taking hold in the labour market.
At 0956 GMT, U.S. stock futures were pointing to a slightly firmer open on the major indexes after closing down on Friday, capping a month of weakness in April.
Corporate results are slowing after what has so far been a strong first-quarter earnings season.
More than four-fifths of the S&P 500 companies have reported, with 76 percent of those topping consensus forecasts while only 12 percent have fallen short of expectations.
A year ago, 62 percent of companies beat forecasts, against 17 percent coming in below expectations.
Results due on Monday include MetLife , XL Capital and Masco Corp .
ANHEUSER-BUSCH, MICROSOFT
In corporate news, brewing giant Anheuser-Busch may be influenced by news it has bought a strategic stake in China´s fourth-largest brewer.
Analysts said Anheuser-Busch´s move to buy around 29 percent of Harbin Brewery could prompt a takeover battle with SABMiller , which also owns about 29 percent of Harbin, one of China´s oldest brewers.
Global software giant Microsoft Corp will be eyed after reporting that retail and new PC sales of its flagship Windows XP operating system had grown to more than 210 million copies since the product was launched two-and-a-half years ago.
Shares in KLA-Tencor Corp could fall after news on Friday that its president resigned and would take a leave of absence from the company for personal reasons.
Shares of KLA-Tencor, which makes semiconductor equipment, fell 1.7 percent on the INET electronic brokerage after the close on Friday.
The highlight of Monday´s data will be the Institute of Supply Management´s manufacturing gauge, which is expected to remain strong but largely unchanged for April, while construction spending is seen nudging up for March.
Economists polled by Reuters forecast the April ISM at 63, compared with March´s 62.5, while construction spending is forecast to show a gain of 0.5 percent after a decline of 0.1 percent the previous month. Investors will also be eyeing monthly U.S. auto sales data.
Markets in London are closed on Monday for a bank holiday, while in Japan, markets are closed until Thursday for "Golden Week" holidays.
((Reporting by Lincoln Feast
Editing by Edmund Klamann
Reuters Messaging:
rm://lincoln.feast.reuters.com@reuters.net
Email: lincoln.feast@reuters.com
Telephone: +44 20 7542 5880))
Multimedia versions of Reuters Top News are now available
for:
* 3000 Xtra : visit http://topnews.session.rservices.com
* BridgeStation: view story .134
For more information on Top News visit
http://topnews.reuters.com
For pan-European market data and news, click on codes in
brackets:
European