US stock futures were little changed on Tuesday as investors braced for key inflation data this week. In regular trading on Monday, the Dow and S&P 500 shed 0.21% and 0.02%, respectively, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.29%. The Dow also snapped an 8-day winning streak. A New York Federal Reserve report showed that consumers’ inflation expectations over the short and long term increased in April, denting market sentiment. Investors now look ahead to PPI data on Tuesday and the CPI report on Wednesday for fresh insights on price trends. Markets also await retail sales figures and Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s remarks on Tuesday. In corporate news, Apple gained 1.7% after finalizing a deal with OpenAI to integrate ChatGPT on the iPhone. GME and AMC also both surged more than 70% after social media star “Roaring Kitty” posted on X, igniting the meme-stock craze.

Producer prices in Japan increased by 0.9% yoy in April 2024, holding steady for the second straight month and matching market consensus. It was the 39th straight month of growth in producer prices, marking the highest producer inflation since last October as cost rose further for most components: transport equipment (1.7% vs 2.1% in March), beverages & food (2.9% vs 4.0%), petroleum & coal (5.3% vs 5.3%), electrical machinery (3.3% vs 4.5%), production machinery (5.0% vs 4.6%), metal products (2.9% vs 3.4%), other manufacturing (5.3% vs 5.5%), general-purpose machinery (3.2% vs 3.8%), non-ferrous metals (11.7% vs 5.8%), ceramics, stone (6.6% vs 9.9%), business-oriented machinery (2.9% vs 4.0%), and information (3.3% vs 2.2%). Also, prices bounced back for plastic products (0.5% vs -0.3%). By contrast, prices fell for chemicals (-0.6% vs 0.2%) and iron & steel (-0.6% vs -3.1%). Monthly, producer prices rose 0.3%, the most in four months, after a 0.2% rise in the prior two months.

The annual retail inflation rate in India eased slightly to 4.83% in April of 2024 from 4.85% in the previous month, an 11-month low, and loosely in line with market estimates of 4.8%. It was the eighth straight month that Indian inflation remained within the RBI’s tolerance band of 2 percentage points from 4%, indicating that the central bank is likely to hold its key rate unchanged at the terminal level in upcoming decisions. Prices slowed for housing (2.68% vs 2.77% in March) and clothing and footwear (2.85% vs 2.97%), while prices fell faster for fuel and light (-4.24% vs -3.24%). On the other hand, inflation rose for food and beverages (7.87% vs 7.68%), aligning with the RBI’s warning that uncertain agricultural conditions underpin inflation risks in the Indian economy. From the prior month, Indian consumer prices rose by 0.48%.

Copper futures were above $4.71 per pound in May, the highest in two years, holding ahead of the $10,000 per tonne threshold as bullish long-term demand and tight supply heightened concerts of incoming shortages. Copper’s key role in the global electrification transition, from electrical vehicle charging to grid-scale energy storage, underpinned the ambitious forecasts for the metal’s utility. This was magnified by piling bets of copper usage in artificial intelligence and automation infrastructure. Meanwhile, the latest data showed that China imported more ore inputs despite the sharp increase in prices, underpinning demand from manufacturers. In turn, the low availability of material hampered margins for smelters in China, responsible for over half of global supply, resulting in a potential 10% output cut this year. High costs of committing to new mines drove giant miners toward M&A activity instead of starting new projects, recently headlined by BHP’s attempt to buy Anglo American.

The Euro firmed above $1.078, approaching a five-week high, with investors watching US inflation data and first-quarter GDP and employment figures for the Euro Area which could impact future monetary policies. The European Central Bank is expected to begin cutting interest rates in June, while the Federal Reserve is likely to wait until September or later. Expectations are for the ECB to lower rates by about 70 basis points and the Fed by less than 45 basis points this year. Meanwhile, the Bank of England kept interest rates unchanged in May but hinted at the possibility of a cut over the summer.

The consumer confidence indicator in Switzerland was nearly unchanged at -38.1 in April 2024, holding close to an eight-month high of -38.0 in the previous period and compared to market forecasts of -40.0. Still, the latest reading remained significantly below the long-term average. Pessimism eased in the gauge of expected economic development (-21.2 vs -22.6 in March), and concerns were lessened about job security (-21.0 vs -22.1). Meanwhile, there was a deterioration in the gauges for expected financial development (-36.2 vs -35.1), and expected price development in the next 12 months (95.9 vs 94.8). Moreover, consumers were also more unlikely to make big purchases (-37.2 vs -36.4).