Stock Market Today: S&P 500, Nasdaq 100 Futures Trade Mixed Ahead Of July CPI Report—AST SpaceMobile, BigBear.AI, Intel In Focus

Benzinga
2025.08.12 09:56
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U.S. stock futures showed mixed movements ahead of the July CPI report, with major indices fluctuating after a decline on Monday. President Trump extended the suspension of heightened tariffs on China for 90 days. Investors anticipate a rise in the annual CPI to 2.9%. The 10-year Treasury bond yielded 4.28%, and markets expect an 84.4% chance of an interest rate cut in September. Analysts noted that stocks are absorbing tariffs well, with the S&P 500 gaining over 28% since early April despite tariff concerns. Upcoming economic data includes the NFIB optimism index and CPI figures.

U.S. stock futures were swinging between gains and losses on Tuesday following Monday’s decline. Futures of major benchmark indices were mixed.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Monday, extending the suspension of heightened tariffs on China for another 90 days, keeping the current 10% reciprocal tariff in place until Nov. 10, 2025.

Meanwhile, Chinese authorities directed local firms to avoid using Nvidia Corp.‘s NVDA H20 chips, citing security reasons.

Investors await July Consumer Price Index data as Wall Street economists expect it to rise for a third straight month. The consensus view is for annual CPI to print at 2.9%, above June's 2.8% and matching the highest level since February. –

Monthly, prices are projected to rise by 0.2%, which is slightly below the 0.3% increase observed in June.

Meanwhile, the 10-year Treasury bond yielded 4.28% and the two-year bond was at 3.77%. The CME Group's FedWatch tool‘s projections show markets pricing an 84.4% likelihood of the Federal Reserve cutting the current interest rates for the Sept. 17 decision.

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust SPY and Invesco QQQ Trust ETF QQQ, which track the S&P 500 index and Nasdaq 100 index, respectively, were higher in premarket on Tuesday. The SPY was up 0.024% at $636.07, while the QQQ advanced 0.016% to $572.94, according to Benzinga Pro data.

Cues From Last Session:

Energy, information technology, and real estate stocks recorded the biggest losses on Monday, while consumer staples and consumer discretionary stocks bucked the overall market trend, closing the session higher.

U.S. stocks settled lower on Monday ahead of key inflation data.

The major indices recorded gains last week, with the Dow surging about 1.4% and the S&P 500 adding 2.4% last week. The Nasdaq recorded a 3.9% surge during the week.

Later in the week, attention will shift to Friday's high-profile meeting between President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska.

Monday.com Ltd. MNDY shares dipped around 30% on Monday after it posted second-quarter results. International Money Express Inc. IMXI shares jumped more than 60% after Western Union announced plans to acquire Intermex for $500 million.

The Dow Jones index ended 201 points or 0.45% lower at 43,975.09, whereas the S&P 500 index fell 0.25% to 6,373.45. Nasdaq Composite declined 0.30% to 21,385.40, and the small-cap gauge, Russell 2000, tumbled 0.086% to end at 2,216.51.

Insights From Analysts:

According to Jeff Buchbinder, the chief equity strategist at LPL Financial, “The stock market’s ascent and low volatility tell us stocks are absorbing tariffs well.”

He explained that another way to demonstrate the market’s comfort is with an analysis of how stocks with the most perceived tariff risk are performing relative to those stocks with the least amount of perceived tariff exposure.

“Our friends at Goldman Sachs created a basket of stocks they believe are most immune to tariffs and another basket of stocks most at risk from tariffs. Somewhat counterintuitively, stocks most at risk from tariffs have performed much better since the so-called ‘Liberation Day’ tariff announcements back on April 2,” he stated.

The note stated that experts have been pleasantly surprised by how well stocks have handled the sharp increase in tariffs. Since the market low from the early April tariff scare, the S&P 500 Index has gained more than 28%. The note highlighted several reasons for the impressive rally in the face of these headwinds:

  • Goods-selling companies have been running down excess inventory, delaying tariff effects.
  • Consumers and businesses did some “front-running,” ordering extra products ahead of tariff implementation dates.
  • There have been pauses and exemptions, delaying or muting the effects.
  • Canada and Mexico are mostly protected by the USMCA trade agreement.
  • Some international trading partners have eaten the tariffs.
  • Some businesses have been able to shift some production.
  • Businesses and consumers have substituted products to reduce tariff burdens.
  • Some businesses have evaded high tariffs through transshipments.
  • Also, keep in mind that as of July 1 (the latest available data on tariff revenue the U.S. government has received), the effective tariff rate was only around 9% (source: Strategas Research). So, more tariff costs are coming.

Meanwhile, Ryan Detrick, the chief market strategist at Carson Research, stated in an X post that "AI Is The Real Reason Why the U.S. Economy Isn't in Recession."

He explained that without AI "growth would be near zero," as the AI spending, driven by Big Tech, has overtaken consumers as the biggest boost to U.S. GDP.

Upcoming Economic Data

Here's what investors will be keeping an eye on Tuesday;

  • July’s NFIB optimism index data will be out by 6:00 a.m., and the core and headline consumer price index data for July will be released by 8:30 a.m. ET.
  • Richmond Fed President Tom Barkin and Kansas City Fed President Jeff Schmid will both speak at 10:00 a.m. ET.
  • July’s monthly U.S. federal budget data will be out by 2:00 p.m. ET.

Stocks In Focus:

  • AST SpaceMobile Inc. ASTS climbed 11.28% despite missing analyst estimates as it outlined plans to launch 45-60 satellites by 2026, with $1.5 billion in cash on the balance sheet. It was also working with the U.S. government on eight contracts.
  • BigBear.ai Holdings Inc. BBAI tumbled 27.93% after reporting a loss of 71 cents per share, which missed the analyst consensus estimate for losses of six cents. Quarterly revenue comes in at $32.47 million, which missed the Street estimate of $41.17 million.
  • Tilray Brands Inc. TLRY zoomed 13.04% following reports of a potential federal shift in marijuana classification, which could significantly impact the cannabis industry.
  • Intel Corp. INTC was up 3.05% following the news of a meeting between Intel's CEO and President Donald Trump, sparking investor interest.
  • Gevo Inc. GEVO surged 43.20% after it reported a positive net income of $2.1 million and achieved a positive adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization $17 million for the second quarter.
  • Cardinal Health Inc. CAH rose 1.30% in premarket on Tuesday as it is expected to report earnings before the opening bell. Analysts estimate earnings of $2.04 per share on revenue of $60.90 billion.
  • Sea Ltd. SE was 0.84% lower as analysts expect it to report earnings of 74 cents per share on revenue of $4.98 billion before the opening bell.
  • H&R Block Inc. HRB was up 0.28% as it is expected to report earnings after the closing bell. Analysts estimate earnings of $2.83 per share on revenue of $1.07 billion.
  • Ziprecruiter Inc. ZIP jumped 11.49% after reporting better-than-expected second-quarter financial results and issuing third-quarter sales guidance above estimates.
  • Archer Aviation Inc. ACHR dropped 10.38% after reporting a wider-than-expected loss for the second quarter. It reported a loss of 36 cents per share, missing analyst estimates for a loss of 26 cents per share.

Commodities, Gold, And Global Equity Markets:

Crude oil futures were trading higher in the early New York session by 0.05% to hover around $63.99 per barrel.

Gold Spot US Dollar rose 0.14% to hover around $3,347.58 per ounce. Its last record high stood at $3,500.33 per ounce. The U.S. Dollar Index spot was unchanged at the 98.5230 level.

Asian markets were mostly higher on Tuesday, except South Korea's Kospi and India's S&P BSE Sensex indices. Australia's ASX 200, China’s CSI 300, Hong Kong's Hang Seng, and Japan's Nikkei 225 indices rose. European markets were mixed in early trade.

  • S&P 500 Earnings Revisions Hit Highest Positive Momentum Since 2021: What’s Behind This Rising Bullish Sentiment Among Executives?

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