Finance
Fed’s preferred inflation gauge highlights holiday-shortened trading week: What to know this week
Stocks drifted higher leading into the shortened trading week that includes the Thanksgiving holiday.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) gained nearly 2% for the week while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) and tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) added over 1.5%.
In the week ahead, a fresh reading on the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge, the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) index, will highlight the economic calendar. Updates on third quarter economic growth and housing activity are also on the schedule.
In corporate news, quarterly results from Zoom (ZM), Dell (DELL), Best Buy (BBY), CrowdStrike (CRWD), and Macy’s (M) are likely to catch investor attention.
Markets will be closed on Thursday for Thanksgiving, and Friday’s trading session will end early at 1 p.m. ET.
Recent sticky inflation readings have raised questions about whether the Fed will cut interest rates in December and how much the central bank will lower rates over the next year.
Earlier this month, the “core” Consumer Price Index (CPI), which strips out the more volatile costs of food and gas, showed prices increased 3.3% in October for the third consecutive month. Meanwhile, the “core” Producer Price Index (PPI) revealed prices increased by 3.1% in October, up from 2.8% the month prior and above economist expectations for a 3% increase.
On Wednesday, Federal Reserve governor Michelle Bowman expressed concern that the Fed’s progress toward 2% inflation has “stalled” and the central bank should proceed “cautiously” when lowering interest rates.
“We have seen considerable progress in lowering inflation since early 2023, but progress seems to have stalled in recent months,” Bowman said in a speech at the Forum Club of the Palm Beaches.
Read more: Jobs, inflation, and the Fed: How they’re all related
Economists expect more signs of that stalling in Wednesday’s Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) release. Economists expect annual “core” PCE — which excludes the volatile categories of food and energy — to have clocked in at 2.8% in October, up from the 2.7% seen in September. Over the prior month, economists project “core” PCE at 0.3%, unchanged from September.
Bank of America Securities US economist Stephen Juneau wrote in a research note that a print in line with expectations will “certainly lead Fed participants to reassess their inflation and policy outlook.”
“That said,” he added, “we still expect the Fed to cut rates by 25bp in December, but the risk appears to be tilting towards a shallower cutting cycle given resilient activity and stubborn inflation.”
Finance
NexPoint Real Estate Finance, Inc. Announces Series A Preferred Stock Dividend
DALLAS, Dec. 24, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — NexPoint Real Estate Finance, Inc. (NYSE: NREF) (the “Company”) today announced a dividend for its 8.50% Series A Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Stock (NYSE: NREF PRA) of $0.53125 per share. The dividend will be payable on January 27, 2025, to stockholders of record at the close of business on January 15, 2025.
About NexPoint Real Estate Finance, Inc.
NexPoint Real Estate Finance, Inc., is a publicly traded REIT, with its common stock and Series A Preferred Stock listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “NREF” and “NREF PRA,” respectively, primarily focused on originating, structuring and investing in first-lien mortgage loans, mezzanine loans, preferred equity, convertible notes, multifamily properties and common equity investments, as well as multifamily and single-family rental commercial mortgage-backed securities securitizations, promissory notes and mortgage-backed securities. More information about the Company is available at nref.nexpoint.com.
CONTACTS
Investor Relations
Kristen Griffith
IR@nexpoint.com
Media Relations
Prosek Partners for NexPoint
pro-nexpoint@prosek.com
View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nexpoint-real-estate-finance-inc-announces-series-a-preferred-stock-dividend-302339003.html
SOURCE NexPoint Real Estate Finance, Inc.
Finance
Stock market today: Nasdaq, S&P 500 edge higher ahead of Christmas break
US stocks opened higher to kick off the final, shortened trading session before the Christmas holiday. The benchmark S&P 500 (^GSPC) edged up about 0.2%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) rose roughly 0.3%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) hugged the flatline.
Wall Street is looking to enter its Christmas break rejuvenated, after tech stocks including AI chip giant Nvidia (NVDA) led the march higher on Monday. Markets close at 1 p.m. ET today and are off tomorrow for Christmas Day.
Sizable gains on Friday and Monday have put the indexes back on the path toward their record highs, from which they took a Fed-fueled nosedive last week.
Wall Street is reassessing the path of interest rates next year as it grapples with the reality that the Fed mostly pulled off a so-called soft landing — but couldn’t fully shake the US economy’s inflation problem. According to the CME FedWatch tool, most bets are on two coming holds at the Fed’s January and March meetings, followed by a toss-up in May.
Meanwhile, many eyes continue to be trained on Nvidia, which saw a more than 3.5% gain on Monday. As Yahoo Finance’s Dan Howley writes, 2024 was Nvidia’s year, with the stock up some 180%. But 2025 could contain plenty of challenges.
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Finance
China’s Finance Ministry Vows Greater, Faster Spending in 2025
China’s finance ministry reaffirmed it will increase public spending with a greater focus on boosting consumption to support the economy next year, ahead of growth headwinds from looming US tariffs.
China will “expand the magnitude of fiscal spending and accelerate the spending pace,” according to a statement published Tuesday following a two-day national conference held by the Ministry of Finance on fiscal work in 2025.
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