Is Flat the New Inverted?

What’s in Today’s Report:

• Is Flat the New Inverted?

Futures are trading slightly lower this morning on an uptick in trade war fears following an otherwise quiet night.

After the close yesterday, the WSJ ran an interview with Trump where he said he was ready to move forward with increasing tariff rates (from 10% to 25%) in early 2019 and delaying the hike per China’s request was “highly unlikely.”

Today, there are a few potential catalysts on the schedule. Economically, there are three reports due out: S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller HPI (E: 0.3%), FHFA HPI (E: 0.3%) and Consumer Confidence (E: 136.5).

Meanwhile on the Fed front, Clarida speaks ahead of the open (7:45 a.m. ET) while Bostic, George, and Evans speak on a panel in NY this afternoon (2:30 p.m. ET).

With Powell’s speech later this week still a major focus of the market, the Fed chatter will be watched closely while the market will remain very sensitive to any further rhetoric on the trade front (the other big event being the G20) after Trump’s comments yesterday afternoon.