Dow Jones Today: Stock Futures Slide Ahead of Key Inflation Reading

Stock futures are down sharply Friday ahead of this morning’s scheduled release of the Federal Reserve’s preferred measure of inflation.

Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were down 0.5% in recent trading, while those linked to the S&P 500 and Nasdaq tumbled 0.9% and 1.4%, respectively. U.S. stocks closed near unchanged on Thursday after a steep downturn the previous session sparked by news the Fed expects to slow the pace of interest rate cuts next year amid concerns about inflation.

The Personal Consumption Expenditures index, slated for release at 8:30 a.m. ET, will provide the latest indication of how the Fed’s fight against inflation is going.

Investors are also keeping a close eye on developments in Washington D.C. as lawmakers work to avoid a government shutdown. Adding to the possibility of volatility, Friday is a triple-witching day, which refers to the simultaneous expiration of stock options, index options, and index futures contracts.

Large cap tech stocks were down across the board in premarket trading Friday, led by a 4% decline for Tesla (TSLA). Nvidia (NVDA) and Amazon (AMZN) each fell more than 2%, while Apple (AAPL), Microsoft (MSFT), Alphabet (GOOGL), Meta Platforms (META), and Broadcom (AVGO) also lost ground.

Among other big movers before the bell, Nike (NKE) shares were down 7% after the athletic apparel maker released its first earnings report under new CEO Elliott Hill, with results that topped expectations but a sluggish outlook. U.S.-listed shares of Novo Nordisk (NVO), maker of popular weight-loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy, were down 20% after disappointing trial results for a new weight-loss shot.

FedEx (FDX) is the big gainer this morning, with shares rising more than 7% after the shipping giant announced plans to spin off its freight business as a separate public company, overshadowing a lowered full year outlook.

Bitcoin was at $93,900 this morning, continuing to slide after hitting a record high of around $108,000 earlier this week.

The yield on 10-year Treasurys, which is correlated with expectations about where interest rates are headed, was down slightly this morning at 4.55% but still trading at its highest levels since May.

Gold futures were holding steady at around $2,620 an ounce, while crude oil futures were down about 0.5%.