Stock futures traded near the flat line on Wednesday night as investors digested the Federal Reserve’s projections from earlier in the day.
Futures linked to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were down 14 points, or 0.04%. S&P 500 futures were down 0.1%, while Nasdaq 100 futures were down 0.2%.
In after-hours action, FedE gained 5% after the delivery company posted adjusted first-quarter earnings of $4.55 per share, while analysts were looking for $3.73 per share, according to LSEG. Homebuilder KB Home fell 2% despite beating Wall Street expectations on both the top and bottom line.
Marketing automation company Klaviyo, which made its public market debut on Wednesday, fell nearly 2% after the closing bell.
These moves follow a dismal end to Wednesday’s trading session.
The three major averages closed at session lows after the Federal Reserve said it would leave interest rates unchanged, but expected another rate hike before the end of the year. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell had said a soft landing for the economy was still possible, but not his baseline scenario.
“I think the surprise is actually the optimism about the economic outlook,” said Jimmy Chang, chief investment officer at Rockefeller Global Family Office, noting the upward revision to GDP growth for 2023. “It almost feels like they’re projecting a Goldilocks soft landing outlook,
Chang’s top economic indicator is the 10-year Treasury yield, which he said could put pressure on the banking system. During Wednesday’s session, the 10-year note reached levels not seen since November 2007, while the 2-year yield hit its highest level since July 2006.
More economic data awaits traders on Thursday, with weekly jobless claims due before the opening bell and existing home sales data later in the morning.
