Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange moments before the Closing Bell and the start of President Donald Trump’s news conference on tariffs on April 02, 2025 in New York City.
Spencer Platt | Getty Images
Stock futures pointed to a mixed open on Wednesday, as investors weighed earnings releases from big banks and awaited the latest wholesale inflation report.
Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 111 points, or nearly 0.3%. S&P 500 futures hovered below the flatline. Nasdaq-100 futures slipped 0.2%.
Big bank earnings releases continued for a second day. Bank of America reported better-than-expected earnings for the second quarter, sending shares up more than 1%. To be sure, net interest income missed analyst expectations. Goldman Sachs shares jumped 1.5% after topping second-quarter expectations.
These results come a day after JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo and Citigroup each posted quarterly figures that topped analysts’ expectations for earnings and revenue.
On top of that, June’s producer price index report rolls out at 8:30 a.m. ET. Economists polled by Dow Jones expect expect a 0.2% increase for PPI.
That report will follow data released Tuesday which showed inflation moving further away from the Federal Reserve’s 2% target. The report weighed on markets during the previous session.
The reading has fueled some concern for Wall Street, showing the impact of President Donald Trump’s tariffs as they make their way through the economy. Trump over the weekend fanned the flames of his trade war after he announced a 30% tariff on imports from Mexico and the European Union beginning Aug. 1.
Trump also announced that he had reached a trade deal with Jakarta, which included a 19% tariff on the Asian country’s exports to the U.S. Indonesia President Prabowo Subianto later confirmed in an Instagram post that he had a “very good call” with Trump.
“Inflation has started a slow climb as signs of tariff-induced inflation are now evident within durable and nondurable imports,” said Joe Brusuelas, chief economist at RSM U.S. “That prompts an important question: Will service and housing inflation, which is easing but still elevated, cool further to offset what will be a more pronounced increase in durable and nondurable goods?”
“Our sense is that the Federal Reserve will continue to display patience as the direction of inflation evolves,” he added.
Bank of America shares rise after earnings beat
Bank of America rose 1.2% after the banking giant posted better-than-expected earnings for the second quarter.
The bank earned 89 cents per share, while analysts polled by LSEG expected a profit of 86 cents per share. Revenue, however, came in slightly below estimates at $26.61 billion. Net interest income also missed expectation.
BAC 5-day chart
— Fred Imbert
J&J shares rise after earnings beat
Shares of Johnson & Johnson gained more than 1% after the pharmaceutical giant reported better-than-expected second-quarter earnings.
The company earned $2.77 per share, excluding certain items. That’s above an LSEG consensus estimate of $2.68 per share. Revenue of $23.74 billion was about in line with expectations.
— Fred Imbert
Danish official says 30% tariffs on EU ‘completely unacceptable’
Danish Minister of European Affairs Marie Bjerre pictured on May 27, 2025 in Brussels, Belgium.
Thierry Monasse | Getty Images
Marie Bjerre, Denmark’s minister for European affairs, told CNBC that U.S. President Donald Trump’s plans to slap 30% tariffs on EU goods is “completely unacceptable.”
“It is certainly interesting times — now, President Trump announced that he will impose 30% tariffs on Europe, and I have to say that is completely unacceptable, that is unjustified,” she said in an interview with CNBC’s “Europe Early Edition.”
“Europe is a trading partner that you can rely on, that you can trust in, and we will go into negotiation with the U.S. in good faith – but we also know that Europe … having a single market with 450 million consumers, we are very attractive market, and therefore we also ready to defend our interests, and we are ready to come with countermeasures if required.”
When asked if the EU could reach a trade compromise with Washington before Trump’s Aug. 1 deadline, Bjerre said it was “very hard to say.”
“We keep being surprised about which [tariff rate] is now imposed on us,” she said. “It started [at] 10% then it was even more, then it was back to 10%, then it was suspended, and now it’s 30% – it is, I have to say, quite unreliable.”
— Chloe Taylor
European stocks open lower
The opening bell rang around 30 minutes ago, and European stocks are broadly trading in negative territory. Hot U.S. and U.K. inflation prints, concern about the regional semiconductor sector and a profit warning from Renault all weighed on sentiment.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 was last seen trading 0.2% lower, with sectors trading mixed. Among major bourses, France’s CAC index led losses with a 0.24% loss.
— Chloe Taylor
Trump says crypto regulation bills that failed to advance earlier now have the votes to move forward
President Donald Trump said Tuesday that a group of House Republicans who blocked several cryptocurrency regulation bills from moving forward earlier in the day had changed their minds following a White House meeting, and would now vote to advance the legislation.
“I am in the Oval Office with 11 of the 12 Congressmen/women necessary to pass the GENIUS Act and, after a short discussion, they have all agreed to vote tomorrow morning in favor of the Rule,” Trump wrote on Truth Social shortly before 9 p.m. ET.
Trump said that House Speaker Mike Johnson called into the meeting and “looks forward to taking the Vote as early as possible.”
It was a dramatic, quick rebound for the Trump-supported pieces of legislation, which just hours before had faced an uncertain path forward, after the bills failed to clear a key procedural hurdle.
Read the full story here.
— Erin Doherty
Shares of asset managers rise on WSJ report that Trump could pave the way for private market investments in 401(k)s
The Wall Street Journal, citing people familiar, reported Tuesday that the Trump administration is nearing an executive order that would make private market investments more readily available in 401(k) plans.
The Journal reported that this order would call on the Labor Department and Securities and Exchange Commission to provide employers and plan administrators with guidance on including these private assets.
Shares of asset managers that operate in the private market space advanced in extended trading, with Apollo Global adding 2% and KKR rising 1.7%.
—Jason Gewirtz, Darla Mercado
Stocks making the biggest moves after hours
Check out some of the companies making headlines in extended trading.
- Global Payments — Shares of the financial technology company advanced roughly 5%. The movement came after a Financial Times report that said activist investor Elliott Management added to its stake in Global Payments.
- Hancock Whitney — The bank holding company slid more than 3% in extended trading. Adjusted earnings for the second quarter came in at $1.37 per share, falling short of the FactSet consensus estimate of $1.36 per share. Net interest income landed at $279.5 million, narrowly beating analysts’ call for $277.7 million.
- Omnicom Group — The marketing and sales stock gained more than 2% after second-quarter results surpassed analyst estimates on the top and bottom line. Omnicom reported earnings per share of $2.05, excluding items, on revenue of $4.02 billion. Analysts surveyed by FactSet were looking for $2.02 per share and $3.98 billion.
Read the full list here.
— Brian Evans
Stock futures are little changed
Stock futures were little changed on Tuesday evening, with investors awaiting fresh corporate earnings and inflation data.
Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average pulled back 47 points, or 0.1%, while S&P 500 futures dipped 0.1%. Nasdaq 100 futures slipped 0.1%.
— Brian Evans
Comments are closed.