Futures Dip Ahead of Powell Speech, Manufacturing Data

U.S. stock index futures slipped Monday as investors moved to the sidelines, bracing for fresh economic data and a closely watched speech from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell to gauge the central bank's policy decision later this month.

Wall Street's benchmark S&P 500 and blue-chip Dow posted modest gains last month, as expectations of a December interest rate cut outweighed concerns about a potential bubble in artificial-intelligence-related stocks.

Still, the tech-heavy Nasdaq's losses in November, its biggest decline since March, served as a reminder that worries around AI spending persist.

Surveys by S&P Global and the Institute for Supply Management on manufacturing activity in the U.S. during November - due just after markets open - could offer insight into the country's economic health.

Recent data still shows that prices are likely to keep rising, which doesn't fully match what investors expect. Because of this mismatch, markets may stay bumpy until clearer numbers come in, said Daniela Hathorn, senior market analyst at Capital.com.

Fed Chair Powell is scheduled to speak later in the day, and traders will scrutinize his remarks for any clarity about his position on any upcoming interest rate cuts.

Despite most policymakers sounding a cautious tone, investors have latched onto dovish signals from a handful of key voting members and reports that White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett is a frontrunner to succeed Powell when his term expires next year.

Traders are pricing in an 87.6% chance for a 25-basis-point interest rate cut in December, roughly doubling the odds from late last month, according to CME Group's FedWatch Tool.

The greater focus this week will be on a delayed September report on the Personal Consumption Expenditures Index, the Fed's preferred inflation gauge, due on Friday.

At 7:51 a.m. EST, Dow E-minis were down 224 points, or 0.47%, S&P 500 E-minis were down 49.75 points, or 0.73%, and Nasdaq 100 E-minis were down 239.25 points, or 0.94%.

Adding to the caution on Monday were expectations that the Bank of Japan could hike interest rates in December to counter inflation and a weakening yen. Higher Japanese rates could strengthen the yen and consequently unwind carry trades that investors have extensively made, given the low yield.

Meanwhile, big-box retailers were in the spotlight as Cyber Monday sales kick off later in the day. Shoppers spent a record $11.8 billion online on Black Friday, up 9.1% from 2024 on the year's biggest shopping day, according to Adobe Analytics.

Shares of Walmart were down marginally, while Target and Nike slipped over 0.3% each and Dollar Tree fell 0.7% in light volumes.

U.S.-listed crypto stocks were big losers as bitcoin fell back below $90,000, extending losses after its steepest monthly decline since the 2021 crypto crash.

Strategy fell 4.3%, Coinbase lost 3.9% and Bitfarms dropped 8%.

Leggett & Platt jumped 8.5% after Somnigroup proposed to acquire the engineered-parts maker at $12 per share.