US STOCKS-US stock futures steady after Wall St selloff, eyes on Fed

(For a Reuters live blog on U.S., UK and European stock markets, click or type LIVE/ in a news window.)

*

Futures up: Dow 0.13%, S&P 500 0.19%, Nasdaq 0.29%

Dec 2 (Reuters) -

U.S. stock index futures were flat to marginally higher on Tuesday, steadying after losses on Wall Street in the previous session, as investors awaited more data to determine the Federal Reserve's next monetary policy move.

Geopolitical developments were also in focus as special envoy Steve Witkoff and U.S. President Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner are expected to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin for talks on a possible way to end the war in Ukraine.

U.S. stocks kicked off December on a dour note, with the three main indexes marking their first daily losses in more than one week on Monday, pressured by a tick-up in Treasury yields and a selloff in crypto stocks.

Investor attention is now focused on Friday's release of the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) Index data from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, the Fed's preferred gauge of inflation.

Recent

data

has pointed to a gradual cooling of the economy and has also cemented expectations that the Fed will likely lower interest rates when it meets next week.

Policymakers are largely divided on monetary policy, but dovish signals from a few key voting members in recent weeks have had traders pricing in an 87.2% chance for a 25-basis-point cut next week, up from about half that probability last month, according to the CME Group's FedWatch Tool.

Investors are also keenly watching who may succeed Fed Chair Jerome Powell when his term ends next year, with reports suggesting White House economic advisor Kevin Hassett is a top contender.

At 05:41 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were up 63 points, or 0.13%, S&P 500 E-minis were up 13.25 points, or 0.19% and Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 74.5 points, or 0.29%.

Markets are also monitoring developments in Japan after the domestic central bank hinted at a potential rate hike, which sparked a selloff in global bonds including U.S. Treasuries on Monday.

A hawkish move could unwind the yen carry trade that traders make given its low yield.

Among top movers, Warner Bros Discovery rose 2.2% in premarket trading after reports said that it received a second round of bids, including an offer from Netflix.

Crypto stocks including Strategy and Coinbase were marginally higher, as bitcoin prices showed signs of stabilizing after its largest dollar loss since May 2021 in the previous session.

Investors are also returning from a holiday shopping period during which consumers spent $23.6 billion online, exceeding analyst expectations, according to Adobe Analytics.

The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development raised its 2025 and 2026 growth forecasts for the U.S. economy, pointing to AI investment, fiscal support and potential Federal Reserve rate cuts.

Later in the day, Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman is expected to testify before the House Financial Services Committee hearing on Oversight of Financial Regulators. (Reporting by Johann M Cherian in Bengaluru; Editing by Tasim Zahid)