US Futures Trade Mixed As June Inflation Ticks Up: ASML, Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, BofA Earnings In Focus

U.S. stock futures swung between gains and losses on Wednesday after ending on a mixed note on Tuesday. Futures of major benchmark indices were mixed.

President Donald Trump unveiled what he described as a “landmark” trade pact with Indonesia, providing U.S. businesses with access to the Southeast Asian country, while securing significant agreements for American aviation and energy firms.

Markets were also assessing Tuesday’s CPI report, showing inflation accelerated in June. In recent months, Jerome Powell has consistently resisted political pressure to lower interest rates, maintaining a wait-and-see approach amid growing uncertainty from rising tariffs.

Meanwhile, the 10-year Treasury bond yielded 4.48% and the two-year bond was at 3.95%. The CME Group's FedWatch tool‘s projections show markets pricing a 97.4% likelihood of the Federal Reserve keeping the current interest rates unchanged in its July meeting.

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) and Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (NASDAQ:QQQ), which track the S&P 500 index and Nasdaq 100 index, respectively, were lower in premarket on Wednesday. The SPY was down 0.093% at $621.56, while the QQQ declined 0.29% to $555.12, according to Benzinga Pro data.

Cues From Last Session:

On Tuesday, information technology stocks defied the broader market downturn, closing higher, while financial, materials, and healthcare stocks recorded the most significant losses.

U.S. stocks settled mixed, influenced by a mixed bag of earnings from major banks.

In contrast, the Nasdaq 100 surged to new record highs, breaking past the 23,000 mark, powered by a sharp rally in Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA) and other chipmakers.

Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE:WFC) reported better-than-expected second-quarter adjusted EPS, and JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) also reported upbeat second-quarter earnings.

Economic data showed U.S. inflation accelerating for a second consecutive month, with the headline consumer price index rising 2.7% year-over-year in June, the highest since February and in line with expectations.

However, core inflation, excluding food and energy, came in slightly below forecasts at 2.9%, against an expected 3.0%.

The Dow Jones index ended 436 points or 0.98% lower at 44,023.29, whereas the S&P 500 index fell 0.40% to 6,243.76. Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.18% to 20,677.80, and the small-cap gauge, Russell 2000, also tumbled 1.99% to end at 2,205.05.

Insights From Analysts:

Louis Navellier said that the “Wall Street has finally figured out that this is how President Trump negotiates, namely by making the other side increasingly uncomfortable,” citing that stock market is largely ignoring the latest tariff news, such as 30% tariffs on the European Union (EU) and Mexico, and a whopping 50% on Brazil on Aug. 1st.

He added that “the CPI report is not a market mover, so the Producer Price Index (PPI) on Wednesday should provide more insight, especially any tariff impact on wholesale goods prices.”

Meanwhile, Ed Yardeni highlighted that the CPI report for June suggests that inflation is no longer declining toward the Fed’s 2.0% target. Instead, it might continue to hover around 3.0% for a while, as it has recently.

“Trump’s tariffs may be a contributing factor, though their impact remains debated. The core CPI inflation rate upticked to 2.9% last month, hinting that the core PCED inflation rate (at 2.7% in May) might have followed a similar trend.”

“The June CPI report reinforces the FOMC’s cautious stance,” Yardeni added.

Although Trump’s tariffs may not yet be significantly driving inflation, they appear to be contributing to inflation stalling at around 3.0%, supporting the FOMC’s hesitation to lower the FFR, he explained.

See Also: How to Trade Futures

Upcoming Economic Data

Here’s what investors will keep an eye on Wednesday:

• June’s headline and core producer price index data will be out by 8:30 a.m. ET.
• June’s industrial production and capacity utilization will be announced by 9:15 a.m. ET.
• Federal Reserve Governor Michael Barr will speak at 10:00 a.m., Fed’s beige book data will be out by 2:00 p.m., and New York Fed President John Williams will speak at 6:30 a.m. ET.

Stocks In Focus:

• ASML Holding NV (NASDAQ:ASML) dropped 7.88% in premarket on Wednesday after the critical semiconductor supply chain company said that it cannot confirm that it will grow in 2026, even as it beat its second-quarter sales and earnings per share expectations.
• Graphjet Technology (NASDAQ:GTI) soared 11.27% after the company's CEO revealed a strategic plan to avoid delisting.
• Nuwellis Inc. (NASDAQ:NUWE) surged 62.44% following the news of the company securing a key patent for its fluid management technology. This development could potentially have an impact on the company's future prospects.
• Data Storage Corp. (NASDAQ:DTST) jumped 31.36% after the company announced plans to sell its subsidiary, CloudFirst, and initiate a share buyback.
• BTCS Inc. (NASDAQ:BTCS) zoomed 19.37% after it reported significant growth in its crypto and cash market value, reaching $96.3 million, with substantial Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) holdings of 29,122 ETH valued at $87.3 million.

• Gain Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ:GANX) shares sank 17.06% after the firm announced a proposed public offering of common stock and warrants. The offering includes shares of common stock (or equivalents) and warrants to purchase common stock, with a 30-day option for the underwriter to purchase up to 15% additional shares and/or warrants.
• J B Hunt Transport Services Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT) was 1.12% lower after posting downbeat earnings for the second quarter. The company reported quarterly earnings of $1.31 per share, missing market estimates of $1.33 per share.
• Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) was 0.51% lower as analysts expect it to report earnings of $2.01 per share on revenue of $16.12 billion before the opening bell.
• Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE:GS) was 0.050% below the flatline as it is expected to report earnings before the opening bell. Analysts estimate earnings of $9.56 per share on revenue of $13.36 billion.
• Bank of America Corp. (NYSE:BAC) was down 0.24% as analysts expect it to report earnings of 87 cents per share on revenue of $26.81 billion before the opening bell.

Commodities, Gold, And Global Equity Markets:

Crude oil futures were trading lower in the early New York session by 0.38% to hover around $66.27 per barrel.

Gold Spot US Dollar rose 0.51% to hover around $3,341.98 per ounce. Its last record high stood at $3,500.33 per ounce. The U.S. Dollar Index spot was lower by 0.10% at the 98.5130 level.

Asian markets ended lower on Wednesday except India's S&P BSE Sensex. Japan's Nikkei 225, Australia's ASX 200, China’s CSI 300, Hong Kong's Hang Seng, and South Korea's Kospi indices fell. European markets were mostly higher in early trade.

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