By Liz Moyer
Investing.com -- Stocks tumbled on Wednesday as the outcome of the midterm elections was yet unclear, though it seemed likely Republicans would take control of the House.
A split government means more gridlock in Washington, as lawmakers are forced to compromise or block each others’ agendas. That increases the likelihood that there won’t be any big initiatives that succeed in the next term.
Investors are also awaiting Thursday’s report on inflation for October, believing the pace will cool from the prior 12-month period. That is something that could convince the Federal Reserve to ease off on its aggressive interest rate hikes to tame inflation.
Analysts are divided on whether the Fed will make one more 0.75 percentage point increase to rates when it meets in December, or whether it will make a lower half-point hike.
New jobless claims for last week also come out tomorrow and could help put more clarity on the condition of the labor market. The job numbers for October were better than expected, but big tech companies such as Meta Platforms continue to cut jobs and holiday hiring by retailers is estimated to be lower than last year.
Here are three things that could affect markets tomorrow:
1. Consumer prices
The CPI for October is expected out at 8:30 ET (13:30 GMT). Analysts expect the year-to-year gain to be 8%, which is less than the 8.2% in the previous 12-month reading. From September, CPI is expected to gain 0.6% compared with 0.4% the prior month.
On a core basis, which excludes energy and food prices, CPI is expected to rise 6.5% for the year, from 6.6% in the prior reading, and 0.5% for the month, from 0.6% the month before.
2. Tapestry earnings
Tapestry Inc (NYSE:TPR), the parent of Coach and Kate Spade fashion brands, is expected to report earnings per share of 75 cents on revenue of $1.5 billion.
3. Ralph Lauren earnings
The luxury fashion brand Ralph Lauren Corp (NYSE:RL) is expected to report earnings of $2.07 a share on revenue of $1.56B.