Opening Comment — Friday, August 22, 2025
DJIA: 44,785.50, down 152.81
S&P 500: 6,370.17, down 25.61
NASDAQ: 21,100.31, down 72.55
Stocks higher ahead of Powell comments
Stock futures are higher Friday morning ahead of a slew of Federal Reserve (Fed) speakers scheduled for today. Investors are looking particularly forward to Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s remarks today as markets hope to gain clarity on the future path of interest rates and monetary policy. As of 7:16 AM ET, the Dow is rising 0.3%, while the S&P 500 is up 0.2%. The Nasdaq 100 is also increasing 0.2% relative to fair value on the GLOBEX.
U.S. equities were lower on Thursday as the preliminary reading of S&P Global’s August manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) unexpectedly rose into expansionary territory, while the services PMI registered a smaller-than-expected decline and remained solidly in expansionary territory. Existing home sales posted an unanticipated increase, while both initial and continuing jobless claims rose above forecasts. The leading index declined in line with forecasts for July. The Dow was down 0.3%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite also fell 0.3%. The S&P 500 decreased 0.4% with nine of 11 sectors finishing in negative territory. The Energy sector was the top performer, rising 0.7%, while the Consumer Staples sector was the bottom performer, falling 1.2%.
Technical analysis
None at this time.
Across the pond, European stocks are higher in mid-day trading as the finalized reading of Germany’s second-quarter gross domestic product was revised downward, showing a decrease of 0.3% quarter-over-quarter and 0.2% year-over-year (YOY). Meanwhile, France’s manufacturing confidence remained steady in August, while the country’s retail sales for July decreased by 1.9% YOY.
Overnight in Asia, stocks were mixed as Japan’s national headline Consumer Price Index decelerated to 3.1% YOY in July, while the core reading remained steady at 3.4% YOY.
In FOREX trading, the dollar is slightly higher ahead of Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s comments later today.
Over in the commodity pits, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil is 0.1% lower at $63.46/barrel as optimism waned for a near-term Russia-Ukraine peace deal.
In the metals complex, gold is 0.2% lower at $3,336.90/ounce following a strengthening dollar.
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