March 11 (Reuters) – U.S. stock index futures inched lower on Wednesday as investors assessed an in-line February consumer prices reading and the Federal Reserve’s outlook for monetary policy.
A Labor Department report showed that the Consumer Price Index rose 0.3% on a monthly basis in February, in line with a 0.3% increase forecast by economists polled by Reuters. It stood at 2.4% on a year-on-year basis, in line with an estimated 2.4% rise.
The core figure, excluding volatile food and energy components, rose 0.2% on a monthly basis, compared with expectations for a 0.2% advance. It came in at 2.5% on a year-on-year basis, versus an estimated 2.5% increase.
At 8:35 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were down 143 points, or 0.3%, S&P 500 E-minis were down 10.5 points, or 0.15% and Nasdaq 100 E-minis were down 31.75 points, or 0.13%.
(Reporting by Utkarsh Tushar Hathi; Editing by Maju Samuel)