Earnings, Inflation Gauge Pressure Stock Futures

Stock futures are indicating a slightly lower open, after the core personal consumption expenditures price (PCE) index rose in-line with Wall Street's estimates and batch of lackluster corporate earnings soured sentiment. The Federal Reserve's favorite inflation gauge rose 0.2% in December and experienced a 2.9% year-over-year rise, both just as economists expected.

Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX) futures sport the steepest percentage drop following chipmaker Intel's (INTC) disappointing report, while futures on the S&P 500 Index (SPX) and Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) are more modestly lower. For the week, however, all three benchmarks are pacing for wins, with the SPX and Nasdaq on track for their sixth-straight gain.

Continue reading for more on today's market, including: 

• Auto stock revving higher before earnings.
• Airline stocks enjoy sector tailwinds.
• Plus, more on Intel, American Express, and Microsoft's recent closing achievement.

5 Things You Need to Know Today

1. The Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE) saw more than 1.4 million call contracts and 1 million put contracts traded on Thursday. The single-session equity put/call ratio and the 21-day moving average remained at 0.67 and 0.71, respectively.. 
2. Shares of Intel Corp (NASDAQ:INTC) are 10% lower before the bell, after the chipmaker reported a posted disappointing first-quarter forecast. The semiconductor giant said its earnings will come in at 13 cents per share and revenue will fall between $12.2 billion and $13.2 billion -- below expectations of 34 cents and $14.2 billion, respectively. Year to date, Intel stock is 1.4% lower. 
3. Meanwhile, credit card stock American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) is 2.4% higher premarket, after the company reported fourth-quarter earnings of $2.62  per share on revenue of $15.8 billion, both of which were better than expected. American cited "robust" demand for its premium products and expects revenue to increase 9% to 11% in  2024. Coming into today, AXP was marginally higher year-to-date
4. Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ:MSFT) stock is 0.2% lower this morning, after yesterday closing above the $3 trillion market cap level for the first time. The only other company to do so is Apple (AAPL), which Microsoft recently surpassed as the most valuable publicly traded company. Over the last 12 months, MSFT has added nearly 70%.
5. Plenty more earnings reports to unpack next week. 

European Markets Higher After ECB's Interest Rate Report

Stocks in Asia closed mixed with both modest gains and steep losses. Investors are anxious over Japan’s softer-than-anticipated inflation reading for December, while Tesla’s 2024 warning weighed on the struggling electric vehicle (EV) sector. The region’s Nikkei shed 1.3%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell an even steeper 1.6%. China’s Shanghai Composite and South Korean Kospi held on to modest gains, adding 0.1% and 0.3%, respectively.

Markets are faring much better across the pond, with European benchmarks in the black midday. Traders were still taking in the European Central Bank’s (EBC) Thursday interest rate report, which remained steady at an all-time peak. At last glance, London’s FTSE 100 is up 1.5%, Germany’s DAX has added 0.2%, and France’s CAC 40 is climbing 2.2%.