US Equities Muted After Hot PPI
US stocks closed mostly on Thursday amid hotter-than-expected wholesale inflation data curbed optimism for a large Federal Reserve rate cut in September.
The S&P 500 booked marginal gains, rosing for third day, while the Dow and and Nasdaq were muted. July’s Producer Price Index jumped 0.9% month-over-month—the largest increase in three years—and rose 3.3% year-over-year, well above the 0.2% forecast.
Despite the inflation surprise, markets still priced in an 85–91% likelihood of a September rate cut, though expectations for a 50-basis-point move disappeared. The materials sector led losses, while consumer discretionary stocks struggled to maintain earlier gains.
Intel surged 7.4% Thursday after Bloomberg reported the Trump administration is discussing a potential US government stake in the company. Cisco declined 1.4% after issuing a cautious outlook despite AI-driven sales growth, and Deere & Co. fell 6.8% following a cut to its full-year earnings forecast amid weaker farm spending.
Source: Trading Economics
