Nasdaq Futures See Significant Gains

Nasdaq 100 E-Mini futures (NQU26) are up 1.12% this morning as investors continue to show enthusiasm for AI-related stocks following upbeat earnings from tech giant Amazon.

Amazon.com (AMZN) has seen a notable jump of over 12% in pre-market trading after the company’s cloud-computing unit, Amazon Web Services, recorded the fastest quarterly revenue growth since 2021. The revenue growth rate in the AWS segment was 37% in Q2, surpassing Wall Street’s expectations of 31%. This strong beat has allowed investors to look past the company’s $20 billion increase in full-year capex guidance.

Furthermore, the gains in the Nasdaq 100 futures have been bolstered by the strength in chip and AI infrastructure stocks in pre-market trading. This is largely due to the evidence provided by earnings from U.S. tech giants that demand for components powering AI remains robust.

However, on the negative side, Apple (AAPL) has slumped over 7% in pre-market trading after the iPhone maker provided FQ4 revenue growth guidance that fell short of analysts’ expectations.

On the economic front, the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis released its initial estimate of Q2 GDP growth, stating that the economy expanded at a 1.5% annualized rate, which is weaker than expectations of 2.1%. Additionally, U.S. June personal spending rose 0.3% m/m, weaker than expectations of 0.4% m/m, and personal income grew 0.2% m/m, weaker than expectations of 0.3% m/m.

Despite near-term volatility, the outlook for U.S. equities remains constructive, supported by strong corporate earnings, ongoing AI adoption, a resilient economy, and favorable financial conditions, according to Sameer Samana at Wells Fargo Investment Institute.

Notable Earnings and Economic Data

On the earnings front, notable companies such as ExxonMobil (XOM), AbbVie (ABBV), Chevron (CVX), and Colgate-Palmolive Company (CL) are slated to release their quarterly results today. According to Bloomberg Intelligence, companies in the S&P 500 are expected to post an average 26% jump in quarterly earnings for Q2 compared to the previous year.

In the bond market, the yield on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note is at 4.67%, down 0.06%.

The Euro Stoxx 50 Index is up 1.04% this morning, buoyed by renewed optimism surrounding the AI trade. Technology stocks were among the biggest gainers on Friday as investors rotated back into AI-related names. Industrial stocks also climbed, led by a more than 10% gain in Teleperformance (TEP.FP) after the company reaffirmed its 2026 targets.

In addition, mining stocks jumped. Preliminary data from Eurostat released on Friday showed that the Eurozone’s annual inflation rate moved further above the European Central Bank’s target in July, as energy costs picked up again and services prices strengthened, with the future trajectory of price growth largely dependent on developments in the Middle East.

Separate data showed that the number of unemployed people in Germany increased slightly more than expected in July, approaching the politically significant 3 million mark on a seasonally adjusted basis.

Meanwhile, European Central Bank Governing Council member Martin Kocher said on Friday that the central bank will base its autumn policy decisions on incoming data to bring inflation back to its 2% target.

“The past few weeks in particular have shown just how quickly geopolitical developments can affect energy prices and, consequently, the inflation outlook,” Kocher said.