Wall Street was poised to open with gains today ahead of a busy week of earnings and other market-moving events, according to the Associated Press. Futures for the S&P 500 advanced 0.5%, while futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.4%.
The U.S. Federal Reserve will wrap up its policy meeting on Wednesday and is expected to keep its benchmark rate unchanged, but it might provide further support for a rate cut in September. This week also will bring U.S. jobs data on Friday.
Earnings season also gains steam this week, with more than 170 companies in the S&P 500 reporting. Four of the so-called “Magnificent Seven” report this week: Microsoft on Tuesday, Meta on Wednesday, and Amazon and Apple on Thursday.
McDonald’s ticked up less than 1% before markets opened this morning despite the burger chain posting weak second-quarter sales. Sales at locations open at least a year fell 1% worldwide across every company segment in the April–June period, the first decline since the final quarter of 2020 when the pandemic shuttered stores. In the U.S., same-store sales fell nearly 1%.
In other dealings early today, U.S. benchmark crude oil fell 24 cents to $76.92 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, the international standard, was down 28 cents at $80 per barrel.
The dollar was trading at 153.91 yen, up from 153.72 yen.
