US Futures Are Steady as Data Keep Fed Bets Alive: Markets Wrap

US stock futures held steady and Treasury yields edged off the day’s highs as US economic readings kept alive expectations that the Federal Reserve can cut interest rates this year.

Data showed that retail sales rose 0.4% in December, compared to economists’ forecasts for a 0.6% increase. Americans also filed 217,000 claims for jobless benefits in the latest week, slightly above what was expected. However, the Philadelphia Fed Index reading of business conditions topped estimates.

Contracts on the Nasdaq 100 traded 0.2% higher and S&P 500 was just above flat. The futures had risen more earlier, extending gains from the ...