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Alpine Immune surges on Vertex Pharma's $4.9-bln takeover

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March producer prices at 2.1% YoY vs 2.2% estimated

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Futures: Dow down 0.07%, S&P down 0.05%, Nasdaq up 0.10%

(Updated at 8:44 a.m. ET/ 1244 GMT)

By Shashwat Chauhan and Shristi Achar A

April 11 (Reuters) -

The Nasdaq eyed a higher open on Thursday after

softer-than-anticipated producer prices data soothed investor

fears about sticky inflation, keeping hopes of rate cuts from

the Federal Reserve this year alive.

Futures for the S&P 500 and the blue-chip Dow, however,

indicated a subdued open.

A Labor Department report showed the Producer Price Index

(PPI) for final demand rose 0.2% in March, against forecasts of

a 0.3% increase, according to economists polled by Reuters.

Annually, it rose to 2.1%, versus an estimate of 2.2%.

"The producer prices came in a little bit better than

expected and it was really a surprise, given the rise that we've

seen in commodity prices and a lot of input prices," said Paul

Nolte, senior wealth advisor and market strategist for Murphy &

Sylvest.

"Some of this will flow through to PCE in a couple

weeks, so the PCE might be a little bit better than expected."

A separate report showed the number of Americans filing

new claims for unemployment benefits came in at 211,000 for the

week ended April 6, against estimates of 215,000.

Wall Street sold off sharply in the last session after data

showed U.S. consumer prices increased more than expected in

March, leading financial markets to deduce that the central bank

might delay cutting interest rates until September this year.

Further fueling concerns, minutes of the central bank's

March meeting showed officials were worried progress on

inflation could have stalled and a longer period of tight

monetary policy might be needed to tame the pace of price

increases.

Several brokerages have shifted their rate-cut outlooks,

with UBS Global Wealth Management now expecting the Fed to start

cutting interest rates in September, compared to June earlier,

while BNP Paribas anticipates the first cut in July.

Yields across government bonds eased after Wednesday's

spike, with the 10-year note last at 4.5375%.

Traders pared back enthusiasm for monetary policy easing

this year, with bets now showing only about 45 basis points of

cuts expected in 2024, according to LSEG data. This is down from

about 150 bps seen at the start of the year.

Investors will also watch for comments from Richmond Fed

President Thomas Barkin and Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic

for hints on the central bank's rate trajectory.

The first-quarter earnings season will pick up pace on

Friday, when a trio of big banks - JPMorgan Chase & Co ( JPM ),

Citigroup ( C/PN ) and Wells Fargo ( WFC ) - is slated to post

quarterly results.

At 8:44 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis were down 29 points,

or 0.07%, S&P 500 e-minis were down 2.5 points, or

0.05%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were up 18.75 points, or

0.10%.

Biotech firm Alpine Immune Sciences ( ALPN ) is set to be

acquired by Vertex Pharmaceuticals ( VRTX ) for about $4.9

billion in cash, both companies said. Alpine surged 36.6% in

premarket trading.

Albemarle gained 1.4% after Berenberg upgraded the

lithium miner's rating to "buy" from "hold".

CarMax ( KMX ) shed 9.0% after the pre-owned vehicles

retailer posted a nearly 27% drop in fourth-quarter profit, hurt

by decreased profitability from units sold.

Fastenal ( FAST ) fell 5.0% after the industrial supplies

maker missed first-quarter estimates for revenue and profit.