Stock Futures Higher After Inflation Data Meets Estimates

Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) and S&P 500 Index (SPX) futures are higher this morning, as the benchmarks attempt to break out of a five-day losing streak. Traders are analyzing the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, which showed inflation rose 0.3% in January and to 2.6% annually -- both in line with expectations.

Futures on the Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX) reversed their premarket losses after the inflation reading. Investors are still weighing President Donald Trump's tariff threats, though, with China promising to retaliate as needed. All three major indexes remain on track for weekly and monthly losses.

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

• A closer look at Nvidia stock's post-earnings downturn.
• Options Prices 101: Implied volatility, time decay, and delta.
• Plus, Autodesk and Alphabet announce layoffs, and Dell Technologies' revenue miss.

5 Things You Need to Know Today

1. The Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE) saw more than 2.4 million call contracts and 1.6 million put contracts exchanged on Thursday. The single-session equity put/call ratio rose to 0.68, while the 21-day moving average stayed at 0.60.
2. Autodesk Inc (NASDAQ:ADSK) stock is up 1.7% in premarket trading, after the software company announced it will lay off 1,350 employees -- roughly 9% of its workforce -- as part of a shift toward self-service sales and direct billing. ADSK is 41.2% higher in the last nine months.
3. Google-parent Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL) is also reducing its workforce, with cuts in its humans relations and cloud divisions. These layoffs are part of the tech giant's cost-cutting strategy. GOOGL is up 0.1% ahead of the open, and also sports a 23.6% year-over-year lead.
4. Dell Technologies Inc (NYSE:DELL) stock is down 5.9% before the bell, brushing off a fourth-quarter earnings beat after the company also reported a revenue miss. The company also predicted it will sell about $15 billion in artificial intelligence (AI) systems this year. DELL carries 36.5% nine-month deficit.
5. March kicks off next week with plenty of jobs data to unpack.

European, Asian Markets Move Lower

Asian markets moved sharply lower today, after President Trump’s confirmed tariff update. Asian chip stocks saw headwinds from Nvidia’s (NVDA) post-earnings drop as well. The South Korean Kospi led the losses with a 3.4% drop, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng followed closely behind with a 3.3% move lower and China’s Shanghai Composite dropped 2%. Japan’s Nikkei fell 2.9% despite retail sales growing at their fastest rate in almost a year, and February headline inflation in Tokyo coming in below estimates.

European bourses are mostly lower as well, amid news that Germany’s annual inflation came in at 2.8% in February, unchanged from January but still higher than expected. A tech selloff and U.S. trade tensions are also weighing, as investors unpack the latest corporate earnings out of the region. London’s FTSE 100 is up 0.3% at last check, while the French CAC 40 and German DAX fall 0.4% and 0.5%, respectively.