Dow Jones futures now trade flat at 38,375 after a brief spike, as market participants digest the Fed’s latest comments signaling a cautious stance on rate cuts. Financial sector futures lead minor gains, with energy pulling back slightly. On Sept. 23, Powell gave a speech in Rhode Island where he fielded questions about the stock market and how the Fed's Board of Governors account for equity valuations in monetary policy. Though the chair of the nation's central bank typically avoids interjecting his opinion on the stock market, he made a somewhat candid observation: Main street investor sentiment is often used as a contrarian indicator, with rising bullishness sometimes signaling an exhaustion of buying power out of a belief that most purchases have already been made, leaving less cash on the sidelines to put to work in the market. Dow Jones futures now are steady at 38,375, with investors watching housing market reports closely for signs of broader economic cooling or resilience.