Wall Street traded on an indecisive note on Wednesday, as investors struggled to interpret the latest inflation figures, which observers deemed mixed.

In late morning trading, the Dow Jones advanced 0.1% to 39,798.5 points, but the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.4% to 17,121.5 points.121.5 points.

An hour before Wall Street opened, the US Labor Department reported a 2.9% rise in the consumer price index in July, its lowest annual rate since March 2021.

Excluding energy and food, two traditionally volatile categories, the annual inflation rate came out at 3.2% last month, whereas economists were expecting 3.3%.

These figures - which confirm the trend towards decelerating inflation - should lead the Fed to begin its monetary easing cycle as planned at the end of its September 17-18 meeting.

But some analysts believe that persistent inflationary pressures in the services sector are unlikely to justify an 'aggressive' adjustment by the Fed next month.

While a rate cut in September seems justified, the decision to cut rates by a further 50 basis points remains a question mark in the absence of major systemic risks", says Florian Ielpo, Head of Macroeconomic Research at LOIM.

According to the FedWatch barometer, the vast majority of traders (56.5%) expect the Federal Reserve to cut rates by 25 basis points next month, but a minority (43.5%) do not rule out a 50 basis point easing.

On the bond market, the yield on ten-year US Treasury bonds eased again after this statistic, losing almost four basis points to 3.81%

On the value side, Kellanova shares jumped 7% after the conclusion of a definitive agreement for its takeover by Mars, for a total amount of 35.9 billion including net debt.

Also on the upside, Eli Lilly shares are up by almost 3%, thanks to an increase in the price target by Berenberg analysts, who have made it their favorite stock in the pharmaceutical sector.

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