Stock futures moved lower Friday ahead of the release this morning of inflation data that will factor into the Federal Reserve’s upcoming decision on interest rates.
Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 were recently down 0.3%, while those linked to the tech-heavy Nasdaq declined 0.5%. The S&P 500 and the Dow closed at record highs on Thursday, while the Nasdaq finished fractionally below a new high of its own. Entering the final trading day of the month, the major indexes are on track to post gains in August for the fourth consecutive month.
Investors are awaiting the release, scheduled for 8:30 a.m. ET, of the July Personal Consumption Expenditures report, which is the Fed’s preferred measure of inflation. The Fed has stood pat on interest rates in 2025 amid uncertainty about how tariffs will affect inflation. A week ago, however, Fed Chair Jerome Powell indicated that economic conditions could warrant a rate cut when the Fed’s policy committee meets next month.
A handful of stocks were on the move this morning following the release of earnings reports. Chip company Marvell Technology (MRVL) plunged 14% and computer giant Dell Technologies (DELL) dropped 6% in premarket trading, while buy now, pay later service provider Affirm (AFRM) surged 14% and engineering software maker Autodesk (ADSK) climbed 10%.
Shares of the world’s largest technology companies, which have an outsized influence on the broader market, were down across the board. Nvidia (NVDA) shares fell 1%, adding to yesterday’s declines after the AI chipmaker’s earnings report failed to exceed Wall Street’s lofty expectations. Alphabet (GOOG) shares were also down about 1%, while Microsoft (MSFT), Apple (AAPL), Amazon (AMZN), Meta Platforms (META), Broadcom (AVGO) and Tesla (TSLA) ticked lower.
Bitcoin was at $110,200 recently, down from an overnight high of $112,600. The digital currency has come under pressure since surging to an all-time high above $124,000 just two weeks ago.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the performance of the dollar against a basket of foreign currencies, was up 0.3% at 98.08. The yield on the 10-year Treasury, which affects borrowing costs on all sorts of loans, notably mortgages, was at 4.23%, up from 4.21% at yesterday’s close.
West Texas Intermediate futures, the U.S. crude oil benchmark, fell 0.4% to $64.35 per barrel, losing ground after two straight days of gains, while gold futures slipped 0.1% to $3,470 an ounce.