Dow Jones, S&P 500, Nasdaq 100 Futures Gains as August CPI Meets Expectations at 0.4% MoM and 3.4% YoY — ORCL, ADBE, RH in Focus

U.S. stocks look set for a positive opening on Friday, with the Dow Jones, S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures rising, following Thursday’s lower close.

Headline CPI rose 0.4% month-over-month in August, slightly above estimates, while holding steady at an annual pace of 3.4%. Meanwhile, core CPI—which excludes volatile food and energy costs—increased 0.3% over the prior month and rose 2.4% year-over-year, coming in largely in line with expectations as energy cost increases drove broader price gains.

Investors are awaiting the August CPI data ahead of the opening bell, with economists expecting headline inflation to rise 0.37% month-over-month—driven by a surge in energy prices—while core CPI is projected to hold steady at a modest 0.19% gain.

Yemeni Houthis, backed by Iran, have captured the strategic Red Sea port of Mocha and are consolidating control over the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, creating an additional maritime flashpoint to complement the heavily disrupted Strait of Hormuz.

Meanwhile, the 10-year Treasury bond yielded 4.94%, and the two-year bond was at 4.55%. The CME Group’s FedWatch tool projections show markets pricing in a 67.1% likelihood of the Federal Reserve hiking interest rates at its September meeting.

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust(NYSE: SPY) and Invesco QQQ Trust ETF(NASDAQ: QQQ), which track the S&P 500 index and Nasdaq 100 index, respectively, were higher in premarket on Friday. The SPY was up 0.70% at $763.12, while the QQQ advanced 0.77% to $714.12.

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