**futures climbing strongly****, page-5

Will stocks pay the price?

Stocks look to rebound but consumer price index, and price of oil, could send them lower again.
February 23, 2005: 6:15 AM EST

NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Stocks will try to steady Wednesday but a lot of that will depend on readings on inflation, oil prices and the thinking of the Federal Reserve.

Stock futures were mixed in early trading, indicating a flat start for stocks after Tuesday's sell-off.

That could change after the government report on the consumer price index, one of the most closely watched measures of inflation, due about an hour before trading begins on Wall Street. The report is particularly important after a higher-than-expected reading in "core" producer prices Friday raised worries about inflation on the wholesale level.



Economists surveyed by Briefing.com forecast that the CPI rose 0.2 percent in January following at 0.1 percent decline in December. The so-called core CPI, which excludes often volatile food and energy prices, is also forecast to be up 0.2 percent, the same as the December rise.

Oil prices retreated slightly after Tuesday's 6 percent jump pushed prices past $51 a barrel mark to a four-month high.

The March light crude contract lost slipped 26 cents to $51.16 a barrel in electronic trading, while the April contract for Brent crude fell 17 cents to $48.45.

The minutes of the Feb. 2 meeting of the Federal Reserve will be released Wednesday afternoon, with investors looking for clues about the pace of future interest rate hikes from the comments of the central bank's policy makers.