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JPMorgan relief - If good news comes in waves, Wednesday is a good day

JPMorgan reliefRTGAMIf good news comes in waves, Wednesday is a good day for

surfing.JPMorgan Chase [amp]amp; Co. reported first-quarter earnings that were 50 per cent lower than last year, but above expectations and a huge relief for investors worried that big surprises lurked at the investment bank.As well, the bank's per share profit of 68 cents (U.S.) was higher than the consensus expectation of 64 cents a share.This follows the report Tuesday's report from Intel, which announced a 12 per cent dip in first-quarter earnings but a confident prediction for second quarter sales that topped expectations.In economic news, the U.S. Labor
Department reported on Wednesday that consumer prices - an important gauge of inflation - rose 0.3 per cent in March, much higher than the flat reading in February but right on expectations. Much of the increase was due to rising energy prices.

The core rate, which strips out food and fuel prices, rose 0.2 per cent, also in line with expectations.The U.S. Federal Reserve, which has been cutting its key interest rate to strengthen the economy, is betting that the inflation rate will settle back as the economy slows.North American stock index futures were higher with an hour to go before markets open for trading. Futures for the Dow Jones industrial average rose 64 points, to 12,418. Futures for the broader S[amp]amp;P 500 rose 9 points, to 1345.In Europe, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 rose 0.9 per cent and Germany's DAX rose 0.6 per cent. In Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 index rose 1.2 per cent in overnight trading.[amp]nbsp;Copyright 2001 The Globe and Mail