Stock Market Today: US Stock Futures Inch Higher, As Analysts Warn of Volatile August—AMD, Pfizer, Caterpillar In Focus

U.S. stock futures are inching higher on Tuesday, following a strong rally on Monday, with major benchmark indices in the green.

This comes as tensions continue to escalate between India and the United States, with President Donald Trump threatening to substantially increase the tariffs imposed on the nation over its continued purchases of Russian oil, accusing the nation of profiting from the Ukraine conflict.

“India is not only buying massive amounts of Russian Oil, they are then, for much of the Oil purchased, selling it on the Open Market for big profits. They don't care how many people in Ukraine are being killed by the Russian War Machine,” Trump said in a Truth Social post on Monday.

On Tuesday, investors will be closely watching the earnings results of Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD), Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT), Arista Networks Inc. (NYSE:ANET) and Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE), among others.

The 10-year Treasury bond yielded 4.214% and the two-year bond was at 3.706%. The CME Group’s FedWatch tool‘s projections show markets pricing an 88.2% likelihood of the Federal Reserve cutting interest rates by 25 basis points during the Sept. 17 FOMC meeting.

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY), which tracks the S&P 500, and the Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (NASDAQ:QQQ), which tracks the Nasdaq, are both up 0.11% and 0.17% pre-market on Tuesday, respectively, according to Benzinga Pro data.

Cues From Last Session:

All S&P 500 sectors were in the green on Monday, with technology, communications and utilities leading the way, with financial services and energy being the only two sectors that were down.

Palantir Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:PLTR) was up 4.14% on Monday, ahead of its second-quarter earnings. Pet healthcare company, IDEXX Laboratories Inc. (NASDAQ:IDXX) was up 27.49%, hitting its 52-week high, after its second quarter results beat expectations, and the company raised its guidance for the full year.

The U.S. Factory Orders report came in marginally better than expected on Monday, declining 4.8%, as opposed to consensus estimates, which expected a decline of 4.9%.

Insights From Analysts:

Ryan Detrick, the Chief Market Strategist at the Carson Group, cautions investors that despite the rebound on Monday, August has been a historically volatile month. He says, “plan for some potential volatility in August,” while adding that he remains bullish for the second half of 2025.

Alongside Detrick is Sonu Varghese, Global Macro Strategist at the Carson Group, who says that what matters most now is “inflation reports,” as he says the Fed is worried about tariff inflation. “If that doesn’t show up,” he says, two or even three rate cuts across September, October and November are on the cards.

Upcoming Economic Data:

• On Tuesday, June's U.S. trade deficit will be released by 8:30 a.m. ET
• July's final S&P U.S. services PMI will be out by 9:45 a.m. ET
• July's ISM services index will follow at 10:00 a.m. ET

Stocks In Focus:

• Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD) is up 1.90% pre-market, ahead of the company’s second quarter earnings after markets close on Tuesday.
  
• Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) is scheduled to release its second-quarter results before markets open and is up 0.48% pre-market.
• Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) is up 0.56% pre-market. The biotech giant is expected to announce its second-quarter results on Tuesday evening, after markets close.
• Eaton Corporation PLC (NYSE:ETN) is soaring 2.75% as investors anticipate its second-quarter results midday, after markets open.
• Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) is scheduled to release its second-quarter results early in the day, with the stock now trading marginally higher at 0.74%.
• Arista Networks Inc. (NYSE:ANET) is expected to release its second-quarter results after markets close. The stock is currently up 0.59% pre-market.

Commodities, Gold, And Global Equity Markets:

Crude oil futures are trading lower in the early New York session, by 1.00%, hovering around $65.63 per barrel.

Gold Spot US Dollar is down 0.23%, trading at $3,365.27 per ounce, down from its all-time high of $3,500.33 per ounce. The U.S. Dollar Index (DXY) trades at 98.949 against a basket of currencies, up 0.17% during the day.

Almost all Asian markets are in the green on Tuesday, barring India’s Nifty 50, which is feeling the pressure from Trump’s intensifying trade wars. European markets continue to inch higher in early trade.

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