Opening Comment — Wednesday, August 12, 2026
DJIA: 53,791.85, down 184.13
S&P 500: 7,728.20, down 24.91
NASDAQ: 26,445.45, down 159.91
Stocks higher ahead of CPI
Stock futures are higher Wednesday morning as investors are awaiting today’s July Consumer Price Index (CPI). As of 7:15 AM ET, the Dow is rising 0.1%, while the S&P 500 is up 0.2%. The Nasdaq 100 is increasing 0.6% relative to fair value on the GLOBEX.
U.S. equities were lower on Tuesday as investors closely watched developments in the Strait of Hormuz. Meanwhile, existing home sales in July fell to an annualized pace of 4.06 million from June’s revised 4.13 million pace. The Dow was down 0.3%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite fell 0.6%. The S&P 500 decreased 0.3% with eight of 11 sectors finishing in negative territory. The Utilities sector was the top performer, rising 1.1%, while the Communication Services sector was the bottom performer, falling 2.1%.
On the data front, the Mortgage Banker Association’s gauge of mortgage applications increased by 3.6% for the week ending August 7 versus the prior week’s decrease of 2.9%. The headline CPI for July is expected to show price increases of 0.1% month-over-month (MOM) and 3.4% year-over-year (YOY), versus the prior month’s decline of 0.4% and increase of 3.5%, respectively. Meanwhile, core CPI is expected to show price increases of 0.2% MOM and 2.5% YOY, versus the prior month’s little change and increase of 2.6%, respectively. Data on July’s average hourly and weekly earnings is also scheduled for release. The Department of Energy’s measure of crude oil inventories is expected to have decreased by 1.80 million barrels for the week ending August 7 versus the prior week’s increase of 2.48 million barrels. The U.S. federal budget deficit for February is expected to widen to $346.0 billion from the prior month’s $291.1 billion.
Across the pond, European stocks are mostly higher in mid-day trading as the finalized reading of Germany’s headline July CPI increased 0.8% MOM and 2.8% YOY, both unchanged from the preliminary readings.
Overnight in Asia, stocks were mixed as South Korea’s unemployment rate ticked up to 2.8% in July from 2.7% in June. Japan’s machine tool orders increased by 50.4% YOY preliminarily in July.
In FOREX trading, the U.S. dollar is little changed ahead of today’s U.S. CPI data.
Over in the commodity pits, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil is 0.2% lower at $83.06/barrel amid uncertainty around the U.S.-Iran conflict.
In the metals complex, gold is 0.9% higher at $4,411.25/ounce.