U.S. stock futures were higher on Wednesday, as the Dow Jones, Nasdaq 100 and S&P 500 indices rose, following Tuesday’s lower close.
Investors are expecting July CPI data before the opening bell, with Morningstar consensus estimates forecasting a slight 0.1% monthly rebound in headline inflation and an annual rate of 3.4%. Core CPI is projected to rise 0.2% for the month and 2.5% from year-ago levels as early-July gas price drops help offset stickier core services costs.
In the geopolitical update, renewed attacks on shipping in the Gulf of Oman and Red Sea, coupled with Iran declaring the Strait of Hormuz will remain closed, signaled a widening impasse in war negotiations, according to Reuters.
Meanwhile, the 10-year Treasury bond yielded 4.68%, and the two-year bond was at 4.21%. The CME Group’s FedWatch tool’s projections show markets pricing a 48.1% likelihood of the Federal Reserve hiking the current interest rates during its September meeting.
| Index | Performance (+/-) |
| Dow Jones | 0.12% |
| S&P 500 | 0.28% |
| Nasdaq 100 | 0.70% |
| Russell 2000 | 0.23% |
The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) and Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (NASDAQ:QQQ), which track the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100, respectively, were higher in premarket on Wednesday. The SPY was up 0.23% at $772.33, while the QQQ advanced by 0.58% to $722.62.
Stocks In Focus
CoreWeave
- CoreWeave Inc. (NASDAQ:CRWV) surged 17.25% after reporting better-than-expected second-quarter financial results. It reported a second-quarter adjusted loss of $1.03 per share, beating estimates for a loss of $1.22 per share, and revenue of $2.58 billion, beating analyst estimates of $2.56 billion.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that CRWV maintains a weak price trend in the short, long, and medium terms.
Super Micro Computer
- Super Micro Computer Inc. (NASDAQ:SMCI) jumped 9.49% after reporting fourth-quarter earnings and issuing strong first-quarter guidance.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that SMCI maintains a strong price trend in the short and medium terms but a weak trend in the long term, with a good value score.
Lumentum Holdings
- Lumentum Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LITE) gained 7.48% after reporting fourth-quarter revenue of $1.01 billion and earnings of $3.23 per share, beating analyst estimates on both metrics. Revenue more than doubled from $480.7 million a year earlier, driven by growing demand for optical connectivity as AI workloads expand.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that LITE maintains a weak price trend in the short and medium terms but a strong trend in the long term, with a poor growth score.
Nebius Group
- Nebius Group N.V. (NASDAQ:NBIS) was up by 9.22% as Wall Street consensus estimates, according to Benzinga, project revenue of $576.7 million and a non-GAAP EPS loss of $0.82.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that NBIS maintains a strong price trend in the long term but a weak trend in the short and medium terms, with a poor value score.
Cisco Systems
- Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) shares rose by 1.24% ahead of its earnings scheduled to be released after the closing bell. Analysts expect quarterly earnings of $1.17 per share on revenue of $16.82 billion.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that CSCO maintains a strong price trend in the short, long, and medium terms, with a good quality score.
Cues From Last Session
Energy and utilities stocks bucked Tuesday’s market trend to finish higher, but consumer discretionary, real estate, and communication services recorded the steepest drops. As most S&P 500 sectors ended in negative territory, tech losses pulled U.S. stocks down for a second consecutive session.
| Index | Performance (+/-) | Value |
| Dow Jones | -0.34% | 53,791.85 |
| S&P 500 | -0.32% | 7,728.20 |
| Nasdaq Composite | -0.60% | 26,445.44 |
| Russell 2000 | 0.32% | 3,027.12 |
Insights From Analysts
According to Dean Chen, the U.S. economy faces a complex dilemma as “weakening employment conditions” conflict with “persistent inflation and energy supply risks,” severely narrowing the Federal Reserve’s policy flexibility.
Chen highlights that declining global oil inventories and shipping disruptions through the Strait of Hormuz create “additional uncertainty for the inflation outlook,” complicating the Fed’s path toward monetary easing.
For the U.S. stock market and broader financial assets, Chen expects high interest rates to remain a key headwind, noting that “the central issue remains the actual cost of capital.” He warns that elevated capital costs continue to place sustained pressure on “global liquidity conditions” and “risk asset valuations.”
Chen outlines two primary market scenarios tied to upcoming economic indicators: if CPI shows stronger-than-expected persistence, “markets may increase expectations for a September rate hike.”
Alternatively, if price pressures moderate, the Fed may “maintain its current policy framework while waiting for additional economic data.” Ultimately, Chen foresees markets remaining “highly sensitive to incoming inflation data, Federal Reserve communication, and changes in global capital costs.”
Upcoming Economic Data
Here’s what investors will be keeping an eye on Wednesday.
- July’s CPI, core CPI and headline CPI year-over-year data will be released by 8:30 a.m. ET.
- July’s monthly Treasury balance data will be out by 2:00 p.m. ET.
Commodities, Crypto, And Global Equity Markets
Crude Oil WTI futures were trading higher in the early New York session by 0.31% to hover around $83.46 per barrel.
Gold Spot US Dollar rose 0.82% to hover around $4,403.84 per ounce. The U.S. Dollar Index spot was 0.02% higher at the 99.8510 level.
Meanwhile, Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) was trading 0.49% lower at $63,723.57 per coin over the last 24 hours.
Asian markets were mixed on Wednesday, as Australia’s ASX 200, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng, and India’s Nifty 50 indices fell. South Korea’s Kospi, Japan’s Nikkei 225, and China’s CSI 300 indices rose. European markets were mostly lower in early trading.
Photo courtesy: godongphoto / Shutterstock.com
