Investing.com -- Futures edge lower on Wednesday, suggesting a slight pullback on Wall Street following a surge in stocks in the prior session that was fueled by expectations for potential Federal Reserve interest rate cuts in early-2024. Elsewhere, FedEx shares dip premarket after the delivery giant slashes its annual revenue outlook, while Toyota (TYO:7203) (NYSE:TM) temporarily suspends shipments of its Daihatsu brand cars as a scandal over rigged safety tests deepens.
1. Futures inch down
U.S. stock futures were in the red on Wednesday, pointing to a possible breather in a multi-week rally in equities driven by hopes for interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve early next year.
By 05:00 ET (10:00 GMT), the Dow futures contract had shed 29 points or 0.1%, S&P 500 futures had dipped by 8 points or 0.2%, and Nasdaq 100 futures had fallen by 50 points or 0.3%.
The main averages jumped in the prior session, fueled by mounting bets that the Fed will start to lower borrowing costs from 22-year highs as soon as March.
Several officials at the U.S. central bank have attempted to temper these expectations in recent days. On Tuesday, Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic noted that there is "no urgency" to begin reducing rates due to the resilience of the broader economy and the slow pace at which inflation is easing back down to the Fed's stated 2% target.
Yet exhuberance amongst traders has showed few signs of abating. There is now a more than 72% chance that the Fed will roll out a 25 basis point cut in March, up from 43% last week, according to Investing.com's Fed Rate Monitor Tool.
2. FedEx slumps premarket
Shares in FedEx (NYSE:FDX) slipped in premarket trading in New York on Tuesday after the deliveries group slashed its full-year revenue guidance and posted weaker-than-anticipated quarterly profit.
In a regulatory filing, the company warned that customer demand will face headwinds from "volatile macroeconomic conditions" for the rest of its fiscal year ending on May 31. FedEx subsequently said it now expects to see a low-single-digit percentage drop in annual revenues compared to last year, down from its prior forecast for "approximately flat" results.
The outlook hinted at weakness in typically robust holiday spending activity in the U.S., as consumers continue to cope with high inflation and elevated interest rates.
Adjusted per-share earnings of $3.99 for the three months until Nov. 30 missed Bloomberg estimates of $4.19, although the bottom-line figure rose sharply versus the corresponding period last year. Strength at FedEx's ground business, which includes big-name clients like Walmart (NYSE:WMT), was undercut by a 60% fall in operating income at the firm's air-based Express division.
3. Toyota to suspend Daihatsu shipments
Carmaking giant Toyota has temporarily halted global shipments of all its Daihatsu brand vehicles after an independent investigation into a recent safety test scandal found fresh issues involving 64 models.
The probe revolved around Daihatsu's admission earlier this year that it rigged side-collision safety examinations on some 88,000 small cars.
Toyota revealed that the panel discovered "new irregularities" in some 174 items, suggesting that the scope of the scandal may be greater than initially thought. Of the 64 models impacted, 22 were sold by Toyota.
Japan's biggest vehicle manufacturer flagged that "fundamental reform" is needed to "revitalize" Daihatsu and prevent these problems from arising again. However, Toyota noted that this will be "an extremely significant task that cannot be accomplished overnight."
4. China keeps loan prime steady at record lows
The People’s Bank of China kept its benchmark loan prime rate (LPR) unchanged at record lows on Wednesday, with monetary conditions set to remain loose for longer to help support a sluggish post-pandemic recovery in the world's second-largest economy.
The LPR is determined by the PBOC based on considerations from 18 designated commercial banks, and is used as a benchmark for lending rates.
In the PBOC's final rate decision in 2023, the central bank left its one-year LPR at 3.45%, while the five-year LPR, which is used to determine mortgage rates, was held at 4.20%. The move was largely telegraphed by the PBOC, given that it had left medium-term lending rates steady last week.
The announcement comes after a recent clutch of November data showed continued weakness in China's economy. Activity in the country's key manufacturing sector remained in contraction, while sluggish consumer spending helped drag China deeper into deflationary territory.
5. Oil steadies as U.S. inventories build
Oil prices rose on Wednesday as traders monitored the unstable geopolitical situation in the Red Sea while digesting an unexpected build in U.S. crude stockpiles.
By 05:00 ET, the U.S. crude futures traded 1.0% higher at $74.64 a barrel, while the Brent contract climbed 0.9% to $79.91 per barrel.
Crude prices rebounded sharply from near five-month lows this week as oil companies and shipping operators announced plans to avoid the Suez Canal as a result of attacks by the Iran-backed Houthi group on vessels in the Red Sea, potentially disrupting oil supplies to the important Asian market.
But gains have steadied after data from the American Petroleum Institute (API) showed that U.S. crude inventories unexpectedly increased by 900,000 barrels last week, defying expectations for a draw of 2.2 million barrels.
The official reading from the Energy Information Administration is due later Wednesday, but the API reading points to U.S. production continuing at record-high levels.