DJIA up 121.05 points (Il Sole 24 Ore Radiocor) - New York, 08 Jul - US shares were trading higher at midday to kick off a busy week centring on key inflation data, Federal Reserve testimony and bank earnings.

With monetary policy centre stage, the focus this week is on the June inflation reading which could help swing the argument on interest rates in favour of a cut sometime this year.

According to the CME FedWatch Tool, investors are pricing in a 74% chance the Fed cuts rates in September.

In this regard the market will pay close attention to the semi-annual testimony from Fed Chair Jerome Powell before the Senate Banking Committee tomorrow and the House Financial Services Committee on Wednesday.

The Fed has acknowledged progress has been made in bringing down inflation towards its 2% target rate but has cautioned that it wants to see more evidence that the easing is sustainable.

On the corporate front, the second quarter earnings season gets under way with a first round of results from big banks that include JPMorgan, Citi and Wells Fargo. PepsiCo and Delta Air Lines are also slated to report.

On the data front, the US employment trends index fell to 110.27 in June from a downwardly revised 111.04 in May, according to data from The Conference Board.

At 1616 GMT, the Dow Jones was up 121.05 points, or 0.31%, at 39,496.92 points.

The S&P 500 was 5.41 points, or 0.10%, higher at 5,572.60 points.

The Nasdaq was gaining 32.43 points, or 0.18%, at 18,387.27 points.

AAA-Zap

(RADIOCOR) 08-07-24 17:21:59 (0504) 5 NNNN