S&P 500, Nasdaq 100 and Dow futures moved in mixed directions on Wednesday after July's headline and core PCE inflation readings came in slightly hotter than expected. Traders held back further ahead of Nvidia's after-hours earnings, while Intuit shares dropped sharply on a weak revenue forecast.
U.S. stock index futures edged lower Wednesday after key inflation measures for July came in marginally hotter than expected, with traders also cautious ahead of Nvidia's quarterly results later in the day. At 08:34 ET (12:34 GMT), S&P 500 futures shed 0.1% while Nasdaq 100 futures dipped 0.3%. Dow futures were up 0.1%.
Core PCE matches expectations, headline reading runs hot
The core PCE price index rose 0.2% month-on-month and 3.3% year-on-year in July, matching expectations, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis. The monthly figure accelerated from June, while the annual reading held steady. On a headline basis, PCE increased 0.2% month-on-month and 3.7% year-on-year, just above expectations.
Concerns have persisted that an energy shock tied to the war in the Middle East could create sticky inflation pressures. Markets have lowered their pricing for a rate increase at the Fed's September meeting, although Boston Fed President Susan Collins warned in an essay that without more sustained disinflation, tighter policy would soon be appropriate.
AI-linked stocks fuel Tuesday's advance
Wall Street's three main averages closed higher on Tuesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 each gained 0.3%, while the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.7%. Artificial intelligence-linked stocks helped fuel the advance, with Nvidia rising 2.2% and AMD adding 4.9%.
Nvidia earnings loom, Intuit sinks on weak forecast
Nvidia will unveil its fiscal second-quarter results after the close of U.S. markets. According to LSEG data cited by Reuters, the company's quarterly revenue is seen doubling from a year ago to $92.18 billion, which would mark its fastest growth rate in seven quarters. Traders will also watch how far Nvidia expects customers to shift from its Blackwell chips to the next-generation Vera Rubin processors, even as concerns swirl over the sustainability of AI infrastructure spending by its megacap clients.
Elsewhere, Intuit shares sank more than 12% in premarket trading after the TurboTax maker's annual revenue forecast came in below expectations, as the company faces competition from AI-powered large language models performing similar tax services.
Source: All News
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