US market outlook: Wall Street braces for CPI test as rally nears record highs; analysts flag pullback risk; tariff impact in focus
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US market outlook: Wall Street braces for CPI test as rally nears record highs; analysts flag pullback risk; tariff impact in focus

A fresh look at US inflation trends this week is set to test Wall Streetโ€™s record run, with several strategists warning that equities may be primed for a pullback after months of near-uninterrupted gains.The benchmark S&P 500 closed on Friday up more than 8% for the year and near all-time highs, while the Nasdaq Composite set a new record, rebounding from early August losses triggered by weak US jobs data, according to Reuters report. The rally has lifted the S&P 500 by 28% from its April low, calming fears of a tariff-driven recession that had spiked after President Donald Trumpโ€™s โ€œLiberation Dayโ€ announcement earlier this year.Strategists at Deutsche Bank and Morgan Stanley have cautioned that the marketโ€™s steep climb has pushed valuations to historically expensive levels as the seasonally weak Augustโ€“September period begins. โ€œI do think the market is set up for a bit of a pullback. Thereโ€™s a lot of concern bubbling underneath,โ€ said Dominic Pappalardo, chief multi-asset strategist at Morningstar Wealth.CPI report, Fed rate cuts and tariff risksThe July consumer price index (CPI), due Tuesday, is forecast to have risen 2.8% year-on-year, according to a Reuters poll. Analysts say stronger-than-expected inflation could temper expectations of imminent interest rate cuts, even as futures markets price in a 90% chance of a September Fed cut and at least two cuts this year.Morgan Stanleyโ€™s Michael Wilson warned that โ€œa softer payroll number with concerns of tariff-related inflation could be the recipe for โ€ฆ a correction, especially in the seasonally weak third quarter,โ€ though he maintained a bullish 12-month outlook, saying โ€œweโ€™re buyers of pullbacks.โ€Tariffs at century-high average levelsTrumpโ€™s new import levies took effect on Thursday, raising the average US import duty to its highest in a century. Additional tariffs on semiconductor chips and pharmaceutical imports have been announced, while China could face higher duties on Tuesday unless a truce is extended.โ€œThe market has kind of ignored the potential negative impact of this friction to the economy,โ€ said Matt Rowe, senior portfolio manager at Man Group. โ€œThe market has gotten comfortable with tariffs being kind of a non-event, which I donโ€™t think is correct.โ€



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