Stocks Fall Pre-Bell as Investors Await Key Inflation Report, Fed Chair Powell's Remarks

07:48 AM EST, 12/01/2025 (MT Newswires) -- The benchmark US stock measures were lower before Monday's opening bell as investors await a key inflation report later in the week and comments from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.

The S&P 500 fell 0.6% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.4% before the bell, while the Nasdaq lost 0.7%. The indexes closed Friday higher, stretching their winning streak to a fifth session.

The personal income and outlays report for September, which was delayed due to the record-long federal government shutdown that ended last month, is scheduled to be released on Friday. The report includes the personal consumption expenditure core price index, the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation metric. It would likely be the last inflation gauge before the Federal Open Market Committee's two-day meeting, set to begin on Dec. 9.

The odds of a 25-basis-point rate cut at the meeting stood about 88% on Monday, up from 86% on Friday, according to the CME FedWatch tool.

Powell is scheduled to speak at 8 pm ET, with traders closely watching for any hints on economic policy, although Fed speakers are currently in their pre-meeting blackout period. Recent data and downside risks to the labor market suggest that a quarter-percentage-point reduction in the Fed's benchmark rate "remains appropriate" in December, Jefferies said in a note last week.

Although a couple of recent reports have helped convince markets that the Fed will cut rates this month, strong data over the next two weeks could still pull policymakers back into the no-cut camp, Macquarie said.

Most Fed districts saw "little" change in economic activity since mid-October as overall employment fell, the US central bank said in its latest Beige Book released Wednesday. The Beige Book contains evidence that's in line with market expectations, as well as monetary policymakers who favor further policy easing in December, TD Economics said.

President Donald Trump said Sunday he has finalized his pick to replace Powell as Fed chair, but did not disclose the nominee, Bloomberg News reported. "I know who I am going to pick, yeah," Trump told reporters. "We'll be announcing it."

National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett is the leading candidate to replace Powell, Bloomberg reported last week, citing sources who weren't identified. Powell's term as Fed chair is set to expire in May.

On the economic calendar, the Purchasing Managers' manufacturing index's final reading for November is out at 9:45 am, followed by the ISM manufacturing gauge for the same month at 10 am. The construction spending report for October also posts at 10 am.

Tesla (TSLA) fell 1.3% as the electric vehicle maker's November registrations fell sharply in France, Denmark and Sweden, Reuters reported, citing official data. Li Auto (LI) and Nio (NIO) fell 1.8% and 3.5%, respectively, after they reported their November deliveries. Coupang (CPNG) tanked 8% after the South Korean retailer reportedly said about 33.7 million customer accounts were affected by a data breach.

Bitfarms (BITF) fell 8%, Coinbase (COIN) dropped 3.6%, Strategy's (MSTR) Class A shares lost 4.2% and MARA (MARA) plunged 4.8% as bitcoin declined 5.4% to $86,393 early Monday.

Credo Technology (CRDO) and MongoDB (MDB) are scheduled to release their latest quarterly results after the markets close.

Treasury yields mostly rose premarket, with the two-year rate little changed at 3.49% and the 10-year rate up 2.1 points to about 4.04%. West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose 1.3% to $59.30 a barrel before the open. Gold gained 0.8% to $4,252 per troy ounce.

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