US Stock Futures Rise, Inflation Concerns Persist

U.S. stock futures edged higher on Thursday despite concerns over rising inflation. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures (YM=F) and S&P 500 futures (ES=F) gained approximately 0.2%, recovering from losses on Wednesday. Tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 futures (NQ=F) climbed 0.4%.

Trump's Tariff Announcement Spurs Market Uncertainty

President Donald Trump's social media announcement of reciprocal tariffs targeting countries that impose import duties on US products raised market concerns. The potential implications for global relationships and inflation stoked investors' anxiety.

Inflationary Pressures Remain High

The Producer Price Index (PPI), a measure of wholesale prices, jumped 0.4% from December and 3.5% over the past year, exceeding economists' expectations. This suggests persistent inflationary pressures, limiting optimism for near-term interest rate cuts.

Earnings Season Continues with Mixed Results

Robinhood (HOOD) shares surged pre-market after beating profit estimates for the fourth quarter. However, Reddit's (RDDT) stock fell on disappointing user growth numbers. Airbnb (ABNB), Applied Materials (AMAT), and Coinbase (COIN) are among the companies reporting earnings later on Thursday.

Wholesale Prices Exceed Expectations

Ines Ferré reported that the PPI rose more than expected in January, highlighting the ongoing challenge of inflation for the Federal Reserve. The hotter-than-forecast readings initially rattled markets but were later shrugged off.

Market Highlights for Thursday

Economic Data:
* Producer Price Index (January)
* Initial jobless claims (week ending Feb. 8)

Earnings:
* Airbnb (ABNB)
* Applied Materials (AMAT)
* Coinbase (COIN)
* Crocs (CROX)
* Datadog (DDOG)
* Duke Energy (DUK)
* DraftKings (DKNG)
* John Deere (DE)
* Palo Alto Networks (PANW)
* Roku (ROKU)
* Sony (SONY)
* Twilio (TWLO)
* Wynn Resorts (WYNN)
* Cisco Systems (CSCO)

Notable News Stories:
* Inflation uncertainty continues to shadow markets.
* Trump and Putin agree to discuss ending the Ukraine war.
* Meta gains favor on Wall Street, while other tech giants struggle.
* Elon Musk urges US government to eliminate certain agencies.