NEW YORK, May 14 (Reuters) - Global stock indexes were slightly higher and the U.S. dollar index was lower on Tuesday as investors digested stronger-than-expected U.S. producer prices data and also comments from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on inflation.
Powell, speaking at a banking event in Amsterdam, said he expects U.S. inflation to continue declining through 2024, but said his confidence in that has fallen after prices rose more quickly than expected through the first quarter.
Earlier Tuesday, data showed U.S. producer prices rose more than expected in April amid strong gains in the costs of services and goods, indicating that inflation remained elevated early in the second quarter.
The key data of the week, though, will be Wednesday's U.S. consumer prices report.
Investors have been watching inflation data closely as they weigh how soon the Fed might be able to lower interest rates.
Higher than anticipated consumer prices in the first quarter of the year raised concerns that the Fed will be unable to cut rates this year unless there is a significant uptick in the unemployment rate.
"We actually think the Fed may not cut at all this year and if it does cut, it'll probably cut once and it'll be late in the year," said Tierry Wizman, global FX and rates strategist at Macquarie in New York.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI), opens new tab rose 59.00 points, or 0.15%, to 39,490.51, the S&P 500 (.SPX), opens new tab gained 10.48 points, or 0.20%, to 5,231.90 and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC), opens new tab gained 70.34 points, or 0.43%, to 16,458.58.
MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe (.MIWD00000PUS), opens new tab rose 1.65 points, or 0.21%, to 784.48, and the STOXX 600 (.STOXX), opens new tab index rose 0.15%.
The dollar edged lower following the PPI data.
The dollar index , a measure of the U.S. currency against six major peers, was down 0.12% at 105.06, while the euro rose 0.22% against the dollar to 1.0813.
Against the Japanese yen , the dollar strengthened 0.16% at 156.45.
Japanese bonds were squeezed as the central bank pulled back a little on its bond buying program.
Benchmark 10-year Treasury yields briefly hit an 11-day high after the PPI data and then they retraced.
The yield on benchmark U.S. 10-year notes fell 1.6 basis points to 4.465%, from 4.481% late on Monday.
U.S. President Joe Biden on Tuesday unveiled a bundle of steep tariff increases on an array of Chinese imports including electric vehicles, computer chips and medical products.
The announcement came after market close in China, but U.S.-listed shares of Chinese EV makers including Li Auto were lower.
U.S. crude oil lost 1.02% to $78.31 a barrel and Brent fell to $82.6 per barrel, down 0.91% on the day.
Additional reporting by Herbert Lash in New York and Alun John and Tom Westbrook; Editing by Marguerita Choy and Mark Potter
