United States stock futures were little changed on Thursday night (Friday AEDT) as investors awaited the release of key inflation data that could shape expectations for the Federal Reserve’s next policy move.
By 10:05 am AEDT (11:05 pm GMT) Dow futures slipped 0.03%, S&P 500 futures rose 0.06%, and Nasdaq 100 futures added 0.1%.
Earnings continued to drive after-hours trading activity across Wall Street.
Alphabet shares edged 0.6% higher after the search giant and Anthropic officially announced their cloud partnership on Thursday, extending Google’s push into artificial intelligence infrastructure.
Ford Motor jumped 3.2% after posting stronger-than-expected third-quarter results. However, Ford cut its full-year outlook, citing disruptions from a fire at an aluminium supplier.
Intel shares surged over 7% after the chipmaker reported quarterly earnings that topped forecasts, signalling recovering demand for its PC processors. The company posted adjusted earnings of $0.23 per share versus expectations of $0.02, with revenue of $13.65 billion compared to an estimated $13.2 billion.
Newmont fell 3% despite beating third-quarter expectations, earning $1.71 per share excluding items compared to the $1.44 expected, on revenue of $5.52 billion against forecasts of $5.19 billion.
Deckers Outdoor slid 12.2% after providing a weaker revenue outlook. The company now expects full-year sales of about $5.35 billion, below analysts’ estimates of $5.45 billion.
The three major U.S. benchmarks closed higher in the prior session, driven by strength in technology stocks and optimism heading into the height of third-quarter earnings season.
The Dow added 0.3%, the S&P 500 rose 0.6%, and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.9%.
Attention now turns to Friday’s September consumer price index report, which could move markets amid the ongoing federal government shutdown that has limited recent data releases.
Investors will be watching closely for signs of whether inflation is cooling or re-accelerating, and for any tariff-related impact on consumer prices.
The CPI release — delayed from 15 October — will be the last major economic reading before the Federal Reserve’s meeting next week, where markets broadly expect a 25-basis-point rate cut.
Stocks are on track to post weekly gains, with the S&P 500 up 1.1% so far this week, while the Nasdaq and Dow Jones are each tracking gains of nearly 1.2%.
