DJIA up 0.14% (Il Sole 24 Ore Radiocor) - New York, 08 Jul - US shares ticked higher at the open 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.

In early trade today, Paramount Global shares were down 1.4% after it agreed to merge with Skydance Media.

Just after the opening bell the Dow Jones was up 56.60 points, or 0.14%, at 39,432.47, the S&P 500 was up 6.06 points, or 0.11%, at 5,573.25 while the Nasdaq was up 18.57 points, or 0.10%, at 18,371.33.

AAA-Sje

(RADIOCOR) 08-07-24 15:39:00 (0447) 5 NNNN