U.S. stock index futures edged higher on Wednesday ahead of a key inflation report that could influence the Federal Reserve's monetary policy path, while upbeat earnings from some AI infrastructure companies offered support.
July consumer prices data, due at 8:30 a.m. ET, is expected to show that prices increased moderately in July. The CPI likely rebounded 0.1% last month, a Reuters survey of economists predicted, after falling 0.4% in June.
In the 12 months through July, the CPI was forecast to have increased 3.4% after advancing 3.5% in June.
"Today's U.S. CPI print will give an idea of how fast inflation could fade when the Iran war is over and the upside pressure on energy prices fades for good. But it won't tell us what the Federal Reserve should do next, as next month's figures will again be tainted by a rebound in energy prices," said Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote.
The situation in the Middle East remained volatile as the U.S. and Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis reported separate attacks on shipping on Tuesday as prospects for ending the Iran war appeared to dim.
Inflation figures will be under heightened scrutiny as investors assess the impact of the oil shock from the Middle East conflict, which has ratcheted up the odds of interest-rate hikes by global central banks later this year.
U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh's stance on offering muted forward guidance on rates also increases focus on each data point. Currently, money market data showed expectations are evenly split between a 25-basis-point rate hike and a pause in September, according to CME's FedWatch Tool.
At 06:00 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis YMcv1 rose 64 points, or 0.12%, S&P 500 E-minis EScv1 gained 19.25 points, or 0.25%, and Nasdaq 100 E-minis NQcv1 were up 191.5 points, or 0.65%.
AI and consumer names boost premarket trading
CoreWeave CRWV.O jumped 18.6% in premarket trading after the AI cloud company lifted its annual capital spending forecast and topped second-quarter earnings estimates.
Other AI infrastructure providers including data center operators IREN IREN.O and Applied Digital APLD.O also rose more than 5% each. Neocloud company Nebius Group NBIS.O jumped 9.3%.
Super Micro Computer SMCI.O advanced 9.1% after the AI server maker forecast fiscal 2027 revenue above Wall Street expectations.
The strong earnings underscore robust AI-related demand as Wall Street giants continue to spend billions to scale up AI infrastructure.
Overall, current-quarter results have painted an upbeat picture of corporate America, helping lift the S&P 500 .SPX and the Dow .DJI to record highs.
Most megacap and growth stocks traded higher on Wednesday, with Nvidia NVDA.O rising more than 1%.
Among others, Cava Group CAVA.N surged 12% after the restaurant chain beat Wall Street expectations for second-quarter sales and core profit.
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