U.S. stocks rose before the market bell on Friday, ending a turbulent week on a positive note as investors eager for a rate cut awaited a key outcome in the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation indicator.
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures () rose about 0.2%, holding on to Thursday’s record close, the third this week. S&P 500 futures () rose about 0.4% and contracts on the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 () rose 0.6%.
Stocks are optimistic as the market stabilizes toward the end of the month, with recession fears and the early August defeat behind us. The long-awaited start of Fed easing is imminent.
The focus on Friday will be firmly on the reading of the Personal Consumption Expenditures index, which is watched for clues about the path of U.S. interest rates this year. While Chairman Jerome Powell has made it clear that the Fed is ready to cut rates, any surprise could shake the market.
Hopes that policymakers will cut rates by 0.5% in September have risen as concerns about the risk of a recession have faded, with Thursday’s GDP revision the latest sign of the economy’s strength. Any sign that inflation is not cooling as desired is seen as increasing the likelihood of a smaller 0.25% cut.
The PCE print is expected to show that “core” inflation — which excludes food and energy prices — rose to 2.7% in July. The release is expected at 8:30 a.m. ET on Friday.
Meanwhile, investors are backing off the Nvidia (NVDA) profit guard that has captivated markets this week. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) and Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) are headed for weekly losses after erratic trading as tech companies struggled.
Chipmaker Intel (INTC) is considering spinning off its foundry and other assets as the Nvidia rival tries to stem losses. The stock rose 3% in premarket trading.
Elsewhere in the technology sector, shares of Dell (DELL) rose after the hardware maker raised its annual profit and revenue forecasts, thanks to demand for its Nvidia-powered AI servers.
