U.S. futures and European equities rose on Friday after the latest US PCE report largely met expectations, thereby doing little to rock the boat in terms of markets’ fears of an inflation resurgence and the pace at which the Federal Reserve introduces its interest rate cuts.
“The data came as a relief for those who were prepared for the worst,” noted Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote Bank.
Futures on the S&P 500 edged 0.1% higher, while those on the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 gained 0.3%. Contracts listed on the Dow Jones Industrial Average remained little changed. Across the pond, the benchmark Stoxx Europe 600 index advanced by 0.5%, as did the MSCI Asia Pacific Index. The MSCI Emerging Markets Index gained 0.2%.
In Asia, the Japanese Nikkei 225 rose 1.9% to its strongest-ever close, edging close to the 40,000 mark. Bitcoin continued its recent rally, approaching the $62,000 mark amid rising demand from exchange-traded funds. BlackRock Inc.’s iShares Bitcoin Trust hit a record $612 million inflow.