Stock futures fall as investors gear up for more earnings: Live updates - CNBC

What the report says

CNBC reported that U.S. stock futures moved lower as investors prepared for another heavy round of corporate earnings, while the prior session ended with modest losses across major indexes. On Wednesday, the S&P 500 slipped 0.14% to 7,498.96, the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.57% to 25,690.90, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average edged down 6.06 points to 52,218.58.

A sharp rise in oil prices was a key pressure point for markets. Brent crude settled up about 3.4% at $94.07 a barrel after briefly moving above $95, while West Texas Intermediate gained about 3% to $86.83. CNBC tied the move to continuing U.S. strikes against Iran and comments from Secretary of State Marco Rubio that Iran was not engaging seriously in talks, with the U.S. prepared to protect its interests and shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.

The oil rally added to investor concerns that inflation could remain elevated and complicate the Federal Reserve’s rate path. CNBC cited CME FedWatch data showing fed funds futures traders had raised the implied odds of a Fed rate increase this month to nearly 34%, up from 10% a week earlier, and were pricing a 78% chance of at least a quarter-point hike by September.

Earnings remained the main focus, with reports expected from ServiceNow, IBM, Tesla, Texas Instruments and Alphabet. Investors were watching for signals on artificial intelligence spending, cloud demand and technology budgets. Individual movers included Super Micro Computer, which surged after issuing stronger margin expectations and reporting large new orders, AT&T, which gained after better-than-expected results, and GE Vernova, which fell after missing earnings expectations.