Opening Comment — Friday, July 17, 2026
DJIA: 52,552.97, down 105.67
S&P 500: 7,533.77, down 38.63
NASDAQ: 25,881.95, down 387.28
Stocks lower before consumer sentiment data
Stock futures are lower Friday morning following continued declines in chip stocks. Meanwhile, investors are assessing additional military strikes by the U.S. and Iran overnight. Investors are also looking forward to today’s economic releases, including June import prices and industrial production, as well as the University of Michigan’s preliminary July consumer sentiment reading. As of 7:21 AM ET, the Dow is decreasing 0.6%, while the S&P 500 is down 0.9%. The Nasdaq 100 is falling 1.7% relative to fair value on the GLOBEX.
U.S. equities were lower on Thursday as June retail sales increased 0.2% month-over-month (MOM), in line with expectations. Meanwhile, pending home sales in June declined a sharper-than-expected 5.4% MOM, while July homebuilder sentiment came in below projections. Both initial jobless claims and continuing claims for the week prior edged lower. The Dow was down 0.2%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite fell 1.5%. The S&P 500 decreased 0.5% with three of 11 sectors finishing in negative territory. The Consumer Staples sector was the top performer, rising 2.9%, while the Communication Services sector was the bottom performer, falling 2.9%.
Technical Analysis
As of midday Thursday, the S&P 500 is still in an uptrend. Resistance is at the recent high of 7,621, while support is provided by the 50-day and 200-day moving averages at 7,461 and 6,984, respectively.
On the data front, import prices are expected to decrease by 0.7% MOM and increase 6.5% year-over-year (YOY) in June, versus the prior month’s increases of 1.9% and 6.7%, respectively. Meanwhile, export prices are expected to decrease by 0.7% MOM and increase by 10.2% YOY in June, versus the prior month’s increases of 1.3% and 11.2%, respectively. Housing starts are expected to have been an annualized 1.31 million in June versus the prior month’s 1.18 million. The preliminary reading of June building permits is expected to come in at an annualized 1.40 million versus the prior month’s 1.41 million. Industrial production is forecasted to have increased 0.2% MOM in June, compared to the prior month’s increase of 0.1%, while capacity utilization is projected to remain steady at 76.2%. The University of Michigan’s preliminary July reading of consumer sentiment is forecasted to come in at 51.0, higher than the prior month’s 49.5. The one- and 5-10-year inflation expectations for July from the University of Michigan are expected to come in at 4.4% and 3.3%, respectively, compared to the prior month’s 4.6% and 3.3%, respectively.
Across the pond, European stocks are lower in mid-day trading as the eurozone’s current account surplus expanded in May. Meanwhile, the region’s finalized June Consumer Price Index reading was unchanged from the preliminary estimate, with headline inflation falling 0.1% MOM while rising 2.8% YOY.
Overnight in Asia, stocks were mostly lower following declines in chip stocks. Next week, investors will be watching for data on Japan’s June Consumer Price Index and South Korea’s second-quarter gross domestic product.
In FOREX trading, the U.S. dollar is slightly higher ahead of today’s data on U.S. consumer sentiment.
Over in the commodity pits, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil is 2.1% higher at $80.62/barrel amid further developments in the U.S.-Iran conflict.
In the metals complex, gold is 0.4% higher at $3,993.83/ounce despite a strengthening U.S. dollar.