Opening Comment — Thursday, January 22, 2026
DJIA: 49,077.23, up 588.64
S&P 500: 6,875.62, up 78.76
NASDAQ: 23,224.82, up 270.50
Stocks higher ahead of PCE data
Stock futures are higher Thursday morning ahead of today’s economic releases, including personal income, personal spending, and Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) deflator (the Federal Reserve’s [Fed’s] preferred gauge of inflation) data for November. As of 7:17 AM ET, the Dow is rising 0.2%, while the S&P 500 is up 0.5%. The Nasdaq 100 is increasing 0.8% relative to fair value on the GLOBEX.
U.S. equities were higher on Wednesday as trade tensions eased following President Donald Trump saying his previously announced tariffs on countries opposing his plans for Greenland would not be going into effect on February 1. Meanwhile, pending home sales declined more than expected in December, falling 9.3% month-over-month (MOM) and 1.3% year-over-year (YOY). The Dow was up 1.2%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite also rose 1.2%. The S&P 500 increased 1.2% with all 11 sectors finishing in positive territory. The Energy sector was the top performer, rising 2.4%, while the Utilities sector was the bottom performer, rising just 0.2%.
On the data front, the third readings of third-quarter Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the GDP Price Index, the core PCE Price Index, and personal consumption are expected to come in at annualized growth rates of 4.3%, 3.8%, 2.9% and 3.5%, respectively, all unchanged from the prior readings. Initial jobless claims for the week ending January 17 are expected to come in at 209,000, higher than the prior week’s 198,000, while continuing claims are expected to come in at 1.89 million for the week ending January 10, up from the prior week’s 1.88 million. Personal income is expected to have increased 0.4% MOM in November, while personal spending is expected to have increased 0.5% MOM in November. The PCE deflator for November is expected to increase by 0.2% MOM and 2.8% YOY. Meanwhile, the core PCE deflator for November is also expected to rise 0.2% MOM and 2.8% YOY. The Kansas City Fed will release their Manufacturing Survey for January, with the composite index expected to come in at 4, up from the prior month’s 1. The Department of Energy’s measure of crude oil inventories is expected to show a decline of 108,000 barrels for the week ending January 16 versus the prior week’s increase of 3.39 million barrels.
Across the pond, European stocks are higher in mid-day trading as the latest tariff concerns eased.
Overnight in Asia, stocks were higher as South Korea’s advance estimate of fourth-quarter GDP showed an unexpected contraction of 0.3% quarter-over-quarter and a smaller-than-expected growth of 1.5% YOY. Japan’s December trade surplus unexpectedly narrowed following a smaller-than-expected increase in exports and a larger-than-anticipated increase in imports. Meanwhile, Australia’s employment change came in higher than projected for December and the unemployment rate eased to 4.1%, while the labor force participation rate rose to 66.7% from the prior month’s downwardly revised level.
In FOREX trading, the U.S. dollar is slightly lower ahead of today’s U.S. November personal income and outlays data.
Over in the commodity pits, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil is 1.7% lower at $59.58/barrel following an expected decline in crude oil inventories.
In the metals complex, gold is 0.1% higher at $4,834.69/ounce following a weakening U.S. dollar.