DJI: Dow Jones Futures Up After 30-Stock Index Clocks Out of Winning Week with a Record

30-stock Wall Street average was the only one to make it in green on Friday after the latest inflation report showed more good data for the Fed’s planned rate cuts.

• Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJI were flashing green arrows ahead of Monday’s opening bell after investors poured fresh cash into the index on Friday, pushing it to a new all-time closing high. The new record of 42,313 points came after the 30-stock benchmark picked up 138 points, or 0.3%. Its two peers weren’t that successful — the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite fell for the day by 0.1% and 0.4%, respectively.
• Driving the buying momentum in the Dow was a solid report on the inflation front. The Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation measure — personal consumption expenditures — marked a pronounced drop to 2.2% in August from 2.5% in July. It was also below consensus calls for a 2.3% clip. Adding to the optimistic outlook was an upbeat consumer sentiment index figure for September — a five-month high of 70.1 from 67.9 in August.
• All that good stuff now leads investors to put their faith in another interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve. Officials are set to meet again in November and decide whether to cut rates or leave them unchanged. Initial projections, according to the FedWatch tool by the CME, point to traders’ pricing in a 55% chance of another super-sized 50 bps cut. But there’s a mosaic of data to pan out before the Fed’s rate-setting meeting takes place.