Futures tied to the Dow Jones industrial average rose 17 points, or 0.05%. S&P 500 futures rose 0.22% and Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.12%. Earlier in the day, the major averages ended a volatile session moderately higher. The Dow closed slightly higher, up 30 points, after falling more than 200 points at one point. The S&P 500 rose 0.3% and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.7%. Stocks looked for stability after a hotter-than-expected inflation report on Tuesday sent them lower to record their worst day since 2020. August’s consumer price index report showed headline inflation rose 0.1% month-over-month base, despite falling gas prices. “One-day events are hard to extrapolate,” Jeff deGraaf, founder and president of Renaissance Macro Research, told CNBC’s “Closing Bell: Overtime.” “It’s one of those extreme events that doesn’t follow through and tends to be good news, not bad.” “Inflation is really a dark cloud over stocks, but I think it’s really important for people to keep in mind that it’s not about the good and the bad in the markets, it’s about the best and the worst,” he added, “and it seems that inflation is improving.” Wednesday’s producer price index report showed a 0.1 percent decline in wholesale prices in August, which DeGraaf said gave him some comfort. Investors look ahead to a series of economic updates on Thursday morning, including retail sales, import prices and jobless claims, as well as the Philadelphia Fed’s manufacturing survey and the Empire State survey – all at 8:30 a.m. ET.
