Stock Futures Rise Ahead of Inflation Data

Stock futures pointed higher Friday before the release of September inflation data that has been delayed because of the ongoing U.S. government shutdown.

Futures associated with the tech-heavy Nasdaq, benchmark S&P 500, and blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average were up a respective 0.5%, 0.3% and 0.1%. The three indexes all closed higher yesterday and are on pace to record weekly gains.

The Consumer Price Index report scheduled for release at 8:30 a.m. ET is likely to show that prices rose 3.1% over the year in December, according to a survey of economists by Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal. If the report comes in as expected, it would represent an increase from 2.9% in August and the highest 12-month inflation rate since May 2024.

Ahead of the report, the 10-year Treasury yield was at 4.01%, little changed from Thursday’s close.

Gold futures were down 1.7% at $4,075 an ounce. West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures ticked higher to $61.90 after soaring 5.5% yesterday after the U.S. placed additional sanctions on Russian oil companies Lukoil and Rosneft.

Bitcoin traded around $111,200, up from a low of $109,500 earlier Friday. The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the value of the greenback against a basket of foreign currencies, ticked higher to 99.02.

In corporate news, shares of Intel (INTC) and Ford Motor (F) were up 8% and 4%, respectively, and UGG parent Deckers Outdoor (DECK) and Newmont (NEM) were down a respective 13% and 6.5% after all reported quarterly results after the close yesterday.

Elsewhere, Target (TGT) and Applied Materials (AMAT) shares were slightly higher and lower, respectively, after both companies announced layoffs; Procter & Gamble (PG) stock rose 2.5% after reporting better-than-expected results Friday morning; and Alaska Air Group (ALK) shares were little changed after the carrier restored operations following a systemwide ground stop resulting from “a significant IT outage.”