Futures Pointing To Roughly Flat Open On Wall Street

The major U.S. index futures are currently pointing to a roughly flat open on Thursday, with stocks likely to show a lack of direction after ending yesterday’s volatile session mostly higher.

Traders may be reluctant to make significant moves as they digest the latest earnings news while also keeping an eye on the feud between President Donald Trump and Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.

A slew of U.S. economic reports were also released this morning, with traders seemingly taking time to digest the data.

The Commerce Department released a report showing retail sales in the U.S. rebounded by much more than expected in the month of June.

The report said retail sales climbed by 0.6 percent in June after slumping by 0.9 percent in May. Economists had expected retail sales to inch up by 0.1 percent.

Excluding sales by motor vehicle and parts dealers, retail sales rose by 0.5 percent in June after edging down by 0.2 percent in May. Ex-auto sales were expected to rise by 0.3 percent.

A separate report released by the Labor Department unexpectedly showed a modest decrease by first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits in the week ended July 12th.

The Labor Department said initial jobless claims fell to 221,000, a decrease of 7,000 from the previous week’s revised level of 228,000.

Economists had expected jobless claims to rise to 235,000 from the 227,000 originally reported for the previous week.

The Labor Department also released a separate report showing import prices in the U.S. inched up by less than expected in the month of June.

Following the mixed performance seen during Tuesday’s session, stocks showed a lack of direction throughout much of the trading day on Wednesday. The major averages moved to the upside in the latter part of the session, however, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq reaching a new record closing high.

The major averages all finished the day in positive territory. The Dow advanced 231.49 points or 0.5 percent to 44,254.78, the Nasdaq rose 52.69 points or 0.3 percent to 20,730.49 and the S&P 500 climbed 19.94 points or 0.3 percent to 6,263.70.

Stocks came under pressure in late morning trading following reports President Donald Trump discussed the possibility of firing Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell during a meeting with House Republicans.

However, the major averages moved back to the upside after Trump said he’s “not planning” on firing Powell, adding, “I think it’s highly unlikely, unless he has to leave for fraud.”

Trump has repeatedly called for the Fed to lower interest rates and has harshly criticized Powell for failing to follow his demands.

The choppy trading on Wall Street also came following the release of a Labor Department report showing producer prices in the U.S. unexpectedly came in flat in the month of June.

The Labor Department said its producer price index for final demand was unchanged in June after rising by an upwardly revised 0.3 percent in May.

Economists had expected producer prices to increase by 0.2 percent compared to the 0.1 percent uptick originally reported for the previous month.

The report also said the annual rate of producer price growth slowed to 2.3 percent in June from an upwardly revised 2.7 percent in May.

The annual rate of producer price growth was expected to edge down to 2.5 percent from the 2.6 percent originally reported for the previous month.

While the data helped ease inflation concerns, the Fed is still seen as likely to leave interest rates unchanged until September at the earliest.

The Federal Reserve released a separate report showing industrial production in the U.S. increased by more than expected in the month of June.

Among individual stocks, shares of ASML (ASML) moved sharply lower after the semiconductor equipment maker warned it may see no growth in 2026.

Financial giant Morgan Stanley (MS) also moved to the downside despite reporting second quarter results that exceeded analyst estimates on both the top and bottom lines.

Meanwhile, shares of Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) surged after the healthcare giant reported better than expected second quarter results and raised its full-year guidance.

Pharmaceutical stocks saw significant strength on the upbeat J&J earnings, driving the NYSE Arca Pharmaceutical Index up by 1.6 percent.

Notable strength was also visible among biotechnology and healthcare stocks, with the NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index advancing by 1.5 percent and the Dow Jones U.S. Health Care Index climbing by 1.2 percent.

On the other hand, energy stocks came as the price of crude oil saw further downside, dragging the Philadelphia Oil Service Index and the NYSE Arca Oil Index down by 1.5 percent and 1.3 percent, respectively.

Commodity, Currency Markets

Crude oil futures are jumping $0.73 to $67.11 a barrel after slipping $0.14 to $66.38 a barrel on Wednesday. Meanwhile, after climbing $22.40 to $3,359.10 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are slumping $36.10 to $3,323 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 148.75 yen versus the 147.88 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Wednesday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.1585 compared to yesterday’s $1.1641.

Asia

Asian stocks rose broadly on Thursday after U.S. President Donald Trump denied that he plans to fire Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell.

“We’re not planning on doing it,” he said Wednesday at the White House. “I don’t rule out anything,” he added, “but I think it’s highly unlikely, unless he has to leave for fraud.”

Gold prices slipped around half a percent in Asian trading as the dollar strengthened on eased market tensions. Oil prices moved sideways due to tariff uncertainty.

China’s Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.4 percent to 3,516.83 as Citi upgraded China equities citing improved earnings trends and structural growth themes. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fluctuated before finishing marginally lower at 24,498.95.

Japanese shares advanced after the release of mixed trade data and ahead of a closely watched upper house election on Sunday.

The June trade data showed declines in exports to the U.S. and China but gains in shipments to the EU, ASEAN, and Russia.

The Nikkei 225 Index climbed 0.6 percent to 39,901.19, closing at a two-week high amid strength among technology stocks. The broader Topix Index settled 0.7 percent higher at 2,839.81 despite Trump saying the U.S. will probably “live by the letter” on tariffs with Japan.

NEC Corp. surged 4.3 percent, LY Corp. rallied 3.6 percent and Sumco soared 7 percent. Seven & i Holdings plummeted 9.2 percent after Canadian retailer Alimentation Couche-Tard withdrew its $47 billion takeover bid for the company.

Seoul stocks eked out modest gains, with technology and auto stocks pacing the gainers. The Kospi closed up 0.2 percent at 3,192.29, reversing early losses.

Samsung Electronics jumped 3.1 percent after South Korea’s top court upheld a not-guilty verdict for the company chairman Jay Y. Lee.

Australian markets posted strong gains as weak unemployment data bolstered hopes for an RBA rate cut. The country’s unemployment rate unexpectedly spiked to 4.3 percent in June, helping traders increase their bets of an August rate cut.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index climbed 0.9 percent to 8,639 amid a broad-based rally. The big banks rose 1-2 percent after Wednesday’s weakness. The broader All Ordinaries Index closed up 0.8 percent at 8,890.80.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand’s benchmark S&P/NZX-50 Index rallied 1.2 percent to 12,905.41, reaching its highest level in nearly five months.

Europe

European stocks have moved mostly higher on Thursday, halting a four-day losing streak on optimism over a potential trade deal between the United States and the European Union.

The bloc is readying a package of tariffs to be levied on 72 billion euros’ ($84bn) worth of goods against the U.S, if negotiations fail.

In economic news, data showed the U.K. unemployment rate rose unexpectedly to 4.7 percent in the three months to May, while it was forecast to remain unchanged at 4.6 percent.

Pay growth slipped from 5.3 percent to 5 percent, spurring hopes the Bank of England will cut interest rates next month.

The pan European STOXX 600 Index is up by 0.7 percent after falling 0.6 percent on Wednesday following disappointing earnings updates from the likes of ASML Holdings and Renault.

While the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.3 percent, the French CAC 40 Index and the German DAX Index are both up by 0.9 percent.

In corporate news, Swatch Group has rallied. After reporting falling sales and profits, the watchmaker indicated that the slump in demand for luxury timepieces in China is bottoming out.

ABB shares have also surged. The industrial-technology company reported record order intake and profit margins in the second quarter of 2025. Rivals Siemens and Schneider Electric have also jumped.

Online supermarket and technology group Ocado has also soared after reporting better-than-expected first-half results.

Meanwhile, low-cost airline EasyJet has slumped after strike action by French air traffic controllers and higher fuel prices dented its quarterly performance.

Advertising firm Publicis Groupe has also moved sharply despite posting strong second quarter results and upgrading its annual growth guidance.

U.S. Economic News

A report released by the Labor Department on Thursday unexpectedly showed a modest decrease by first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits in the week ended July 12th.

The Labor Department said initial jobless claims fell to 221,000, a decrease of 7,000 from the previous week’s revised level of 228,000.

Economists had expected jobless claims to rise to 235,000 from the 227,000 originally reported for the previous week.

The report said the less volatile four-week moving average also slipped to 229,500, a decrease of 6,250 from the previous week’s revised average of 235,750.

Retail sales in the U.S. rebounded by much more than expected in the month of June, according to a report released by the Commerce Department on Thursday.

The Commerce Department said retail sales climbed by 0.6 percent in June after slumping by 0.9 percent in May. Economists had expected retail sales to inch up by 0.1 percent.

Excluding sales by motor vehicle and parts dealers, retail sales rose by 0.5 percent in June after edging down by 0.2 percent in May. Ex-auto sales were expected to rise by 0.3 percent.

Import prices in the U.S. inched up by less than expected in the month of June, the Labor Department revealed in a report released on Thursday.

The Labor Department said import prices crept up by 0.1 percent in June after falling by a revised 0.4 percent in May.

Economists had expected import prices to rise by 0.3 percent compared to the unchanged reading originally reported for the previous month.

Meanwhile, the report said export prices climbed by 0.5 percent in June after sliding by 0.6 percent in May.

Export prices were expected to come in unchanged compared to the 0.9 percent slump originally reported for the previous month.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia released a report on Thursday showing manufacturing activity in the region unexpectedly expanded overall in the month of July.

The Philly Fed said its diffusion index for current general activity surged to a positive 15.9 in July from a negative 4.0 in June, with a positive reading indicating growth. Economists had expected the index to rise to a negative 1.0.

Looking ahead, the report said the future activity indicators suggest that the firms continue to expect growth over the next six months.

At 10 am ET, the National Association of Home Builders is scheduled to release its report on homebuilder confidence in the month of July. The housing market index is expected to inch up to 33 in July after slipping to 32 in June.

The Commerce Department is also due to release its report on business inventories in the month of May at 10 am ET. Business inventories are expected to come in unchanged for the second consecutive month.

Also at 10 am ET, Federal Reserve Board Governor Adriana Kugler is scheduled to speak on “A View of the Housing Market and U.S. Economic Outlook” before the Housing Partnership Network Symposium.

San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank President Mary Daly is due to participate in a moderated conversation before the 2025 Rocky Mountain Economic Summit at 12:45 pm ET.

At 1:30 pm ET, Federal Reserve Board Governor Lisa Cook is scheduled to speaks on “Artificial Intelligence and Innovation” at the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) Summer Institute: Digital Economics and Artificial Intelligence.

Federal Reserve Board Governor Christopher Waller is due to speak on the economic outlook before the Money Marketeers of New York University at 6:30 pm ET.