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Eli Lilly ( LLY ) jumps after raising annual profit forecast

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McDonald's down after rare profit miss

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Futures down: Dow 0.40%, S&P 0.40%, Nasdaq 0.49%

(Updated at 8:45 a.m. ET/1245 GMT)

By Shristi Achar A and Shashwat Chauhan

April 30 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks were poised for a lower

open on Tuesday as stronger-than-expected labor costs signaled

persistent inflationary pressures, while caution prevailed ahead

of the Federal Reserve's interest rate decision.

Data showed employment costs for the first quarter rose

1.2%, stronger than estimates of a 1% advance, stoking fears of

continued wage inflation and tempering rate-cut hopes.

Money markets are largely expecting the U.S. central bank to

stand pat on interest rates this meeting, while pricing in just

about 31 basis points (bps) of rate cuts this year, down from

about 150 bps estimated at the start of 2024, according to LSEG

data.

"This pretty much tells you that the Fed is going to be very

reluctant to reduce short-term interest rates in 2024 and that's

had the predictable impact on the stock market," said Hugh

Johnson, chief economist at Hugh Johnson Economics.

"It doesn't really take interest rate reductions off the

table, but it does mean that this number is certainly not going

to help."

The data comes ahead of the Federal Reserve Open Market

Committee's (FOMC) two-day meeting later in the day, with

markets focused on the interest rate verdict and Chair Jerome

Powell's remarks.

On the earnings front, GE HealthCare ( GEHC ) lost 8.6% in

premarket trading after the medical equipment firm missed

estimates for first-quarter revenue, while McDonald's

fell 1.5% as it missed profit estimates for the first time in

two years.

U.S. industrial conglomerate 3M ( MMM ) gained 6.1% after

posting a 21% rise in quarterly profit.

Eli Lilly ( LLY ) added 6.2% after the drugmaker raised its

full-year profit forecast, betting on surging demand for its

weight-loss treatment Zepbound and type 2 diabetes drug

Mounjaro.

U.S. equities have had a rough April as persistent

inflationary pressures sharply pulled back bets on interest rate

cut hopes, while heightened tensions in the Middle East and

earnings updates also added to the volatility.

All three U.S. stock indexes are poised to record their

first monthly loss in six.

At 8:45 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis were down 155 points,

or 0.4%, S&P 500 e-minis were down 20.75 points, or

0.4%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were down 88.25 points, or

0.49%.

Tesla shares were down 3.1%, following a 15% surge

in the previous session after a report that CEO Elon Musk had

dismissed two senior executives and plans to lay off hundreds

more employees.

Coursera ( COUR ) shed 16.7% after the online learning

platform forecast full-year revenue below market estimates.

Mosaic added 3.7% after the fertilizer maker said

Saudi Arabia's flagship mining firm Ma'aden would acquire the

U.S.-based company's stake in a phosphate production joint

venture by issuing shares worth about $1.5 billion.