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The S&P500 could see higher volatility upon the release of the November FOMC meeting minutes on Wednesday, which should offer insights into how the Fed is thinking about the path of rate increases. Tech companies HP and Dell (today in after-hours) will report earnings, offering a glimpse of the state of demand for PCs. And retailers Best Buy and Dollar Tree will report earnings, ahead of "Black Friday", which is historically one of the year's biggest shopping days. This morning S&P500 futures are lower as the number of China Covid cases jumped over the weekend, worrying traders about the global growth outlook. 

The indice for US tech giants, the Nasdaq 100 is holding its positive momentum as it remains above its resistance of around 11'700. A break below could signal a larger move lower. In the meantime, earnings are resilient and Treasury yields are steady, an encouraging sign. 

This afternoon, stocks are retreating as yields are edging higher. The mixed economic reports were also not promising. While initial unemployment claims in the United States continue to demonstrate that labor demand remains strong, Philly Fed indicators such as Manufacturing and New Orders indicate that growth is slowing. This suggests that despite a deteriorating growth outlook, increasing labor demand could keep prices higher for longer, which is the definition of stagflation.

The market is being pressured by a decline in retailer stocks in pre-market trade, with Target down 14% after reporting weaker-than-expected Q3 adjusted EPS and announcing a decline in Q4 comparative same-store sales. Also, bond yields increased as investors became concerned that today's stronger-than-expected US The Fed will continue to raise interest rates aggressively as a result of the October retail sales report.

US Producer Price Index rose by 0.2% month-over-month (lower than 0.4% forecasted), while Core PPI (less food and energy) saw no growth from previous month (vs 0.3% expected). The recent data suggest inflation is slowing down. Stocks and bonds surged following the news while the dollar gauge continued to weaken.