Investing.com -- U.S. stock futures rose Thursday, extending the previous session’s gains after cooler-than-expected inflation data raised expectations of an early end to the Federal Reserve’s rate-hiking cycle.
By 06:50 ET (10:50 GMT), the Dow Futures contract was up 55 points, or 0.2%, S&P 500 Futures traded 16 points, or 0.4%, higher and Nasdaq 100 Futures climbed 108 points, or 0.7%.
The benchmark indices on Wall Street closed higher Wednesday after U.S. inflation cooled more than expected in June, with U.S. annual CPI falling to 3% in June, a drop of a full percentage point from last month, and core inflation came in at 0.2% in June against market expectations for 0.3%.
The blue chip Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.3%, the broad-based S&P 500 closed 0.7% higher and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 1.2%.
The Federal Reserve is still expected to raise interest rates another quarter of a percentage point when it meets in late July, but these June consumer prices raised expectations that the July hike may be the last.
U.S. June PPI next up
Another key indicator of inflation, the producer price index, is due later in the session, and the headline number is expected to rise 0.2% for the month and 0.4% for the year ended in June.
Additionally, core prices, which strip out volatile food and fuel prices, are expected to rise 0.2% for the month and 2.7% for the year.
Disney extends CEO’s contract
In corporate news, Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) stock rose 1.5% premarket after the entertainment giant announced it is extending CEO Bob Iger's contract through 2026, two years longer than originally planned, saying the move provides for continuity of leadership during its ongoing transformation.
PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) stock rose 2.1% after the beverages giant raised its full-year forecast following stronger-than-expected quarterly earnings and revenue, while Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) stock rose 3.3% after the carrier reported its best-ever quarterly revenue and earnings on the back of a sharp post-pandemic rebound in travel demand.
Crude gains on hopes for higher demand
Oil prices rose slightly Thursday, hovering near three-month highs on the back of the softer-than-expected U.S. inflation data and strong Chinese monthly oil imports.
China's crude imports in June rose over 45% on the year, hitting its second-highest monthly figure on record, customs data released on Thursday showed, raising hopes of a recovery at the world’s second-largest economy and biggest crude importer.
Still, gains have been limited after the IEA’s monthly report stated that global oil demand growth will taper off over the next few years as high prices and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine speed up the transition away from fossil fuels.
“Growth in the world’s demand for oil is set to slow almost to a halt in the coming years,” said the International Energy Agency. “The shift to a clean energy economy is picking up pace, with a peak in global oil demand in sight before the end of this decade.”
By 06:50 ET, U.S. crude futures traded 0.2% higher at $75.89 a barrel, while the Brent contract climbed 0.3% to $80.34.
Additionally, gold futures rose 0.2% to $1,964.90/oz, while EUR/USD traded 0.3% higher at 1.1164.
(Oliver Gray contributed to this item.)