Geoffrey Smith 

Investing.com — Federal Reserve to publish minutes of the latest policy meeting. Also, durable goods orders for April will be published. As ECB policymakers rescind talk of an aggressive increase in interest rates, the euro drops. Nelson Peltz might be nearing a Wendy’s takeover (NASDAQ:), but Nvidia’s report will come after the close. Russia is closer to defaulting on its manufactured debt, while U.S. data will reveal how well-stocked gas stations in the country are before the beginning of summer driving season. What you need to know about the financial markets today, Wednesday, May 25th. 

1. Burry recalls the 2008 memories by requesting Fed Minutes

At 2PM ET (1800 GMT), the Federal Reserve will release minutes from its most recent meeting.  This release is somewhat retrograde, as it was published at a moment when the markets are still focused on inflation risk and not recession.

These have been the dominant forces this week as profit warnings, weak home sales data and bond yields fell have punished growth-oriented stocks and consumers. Michael Burry’s tweet, which was somewhat delinquent and reminiscent of the previous recession, evoked memories from that period. He is well-known for shorting subprime credit between 2007-8.

“As I said about 2008, it is like watching a plane crash. It hurts, it is not fun, and I’m not smiling,” Burry said, without specifying what “it” was.

Before the Fed, there will also be durable goods data for April, which may show a further slowdown on consumer durable spending in particular, if Best Buy’s profit warning on Tuesday is anything to go by.

2. The Euro drops as ECB hawks get in line. RBNZ raises 50bps

The fell as European Central Bank hawks and swing voters fell into line behind ECB president Christine Lagarde’s call for only gradual interest rate increases.

Dutch central bank governor Klaas Knot and his Finnish counterpart Olli Rehn, a key centrist on the governing council, indicated that they would both be satisfied with only a 25 basis point hike at the bank’s meeting in July. Rehn in particular flagged the big downward revisions to this year’s growth forecasts that are likely when the ECB meets next month.

European data overnight were mixed, with French unemployment rising a little, but Spain’s producer price inflation still roaring ahead at an annual rate of 45%.

Overnight, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand increased its key interest rate by 50 basis point to 2%.

3. Stocks set for flat opening; Wendy’s in focus

U.S. stock markets are set for a mixed opening, with technology and growth stocks unable to claw back much of Tuesday’s underperformance.

6:20 AM ET saw a decrease of 18 points (or less than 0.1%) while the were still up by an identical amount.

Stocks likely to be in focus later include JW Nordstrom (NYSE:), whose earnings after the bell on Tuesday took the edge of the recent retail sell-off, and Wendy’s, after a filing from Nelson Peltz’s Trian suggested that its biggest shareholder is considering a takeover bid. Lyft (NASDAQ) might be headed in the wrong direction following a report that also shows it slows down its hiring.

Pfizer (NYSE:) The company said it would sell branded drugs at a low price to countries with low incomes while it was putting pressure on pharma stocks. 

Nvidia Chipmaker is the main highlight of today’s earnings list, even if it happens only at night.

4. Russia edges closer to default     

Russia’s central bank said it will hold an extraordinary meeting this week, amid intense speculation as to what happens next with the country’s sovereign debt.

The U.S. Treasury confirmed on Tuesday that it will not renew a temporary waiver on sanctions for processing the Russian government’s debt repayments, something that is likely to put the country officially in default – even though it is both willing and able to pay.

Other speculation suggests that it will further relax its capital controls and cut interest rates in order to bring the ruble’s explosive appreciation under control. The ruble hit a four-year high again on Wednesday, supported by a current account surplus that has widened not only because of record energy export receipts,  but also because of a collapse in imports.

5. U.S. gasoline inventories at 8-year high

Crude oil prices increased again after American Petroleum Institute data suggested that U.S. consumption ahead of Memorial Day weekend was still strong, despite record high gasoline prices.

API reports that crude stocks increased by 600,000. Barrels last week, while gasoline stocks are at the lowest point for this time period since 2014 when peak gasoline demand begins to kick in. The U.S. government’s weekly inventory data are due at 10:30 AM ET.

Futures rose 1.4% to $111.31 per barrel by 6:35 am ET. They were also up 1.2% to $112.04 per barrel