Stock Market Today: Dow, S&P 500, Nasdaq Set to Open Up; Fed Powell Jackson Hole Speech; Nvidia, Workday, Peloton, More Movers

Stock futures are rising Friday after a selloff in the previous session as investors await a key speech from Jerome Powell at the Jackson Hole Economic Symposium, with the Federal Reserve Reserve chairman expected to give insights on the timing and pace of interest-rate cuts.

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U.S. stock futures advanced on Friday after a Thursday selloff as investors awaited a key speech from Jerome Powell at the Jackson Hole Economic Symposium, with the Federal Reserve Reserve chairman expected to give insights on the timing and pace of interest-rate cuts.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average were rising 128 points, or 0.3%. Those on the S&P 500 were up 0.5%, while the Nasdaq Composite was rising 0.8% in premarket trading.

Stocks dropped on Thursday as investors fretted over just how much the Fed may cut interest rates over the coming months. Positive economic data this week boosted confidence in the U.S. economic outlook, but simultaneously raised the possibility that the Fed won’t have to act as fast to cut interest rates in response to a slowing economy.

“Markets saw a sizeable pullback over the last 24 hours, with the S&P 500 posting its worst daily performance in over two weeks,” said Deutsche Bank analyst Henry Allen.

“The moves came as investors grew more skeptical about the chances of [a half percentage point of] rate cuts this year, thanks to more positive data and comments from Fed officials yesterday,” Allen added.

“For investors, the big question is to what extent Powell validates expectations for a September rate cut, and whether he offers any indication of how big any rate cut might be.”

Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey’s speech at the Jackson Hole symposium later could be a “non-event” for sterling–which has risen significantly in recent days—as he might say very little about interest-rate cuts, ING analyst Francesco Pesole said in a note.

Bailey doesn’t have to deal with aggressive rate-cut expectations, as the U.S. Federal Reserve does, although the U.K. still needs to gain more confidence about lower inflation, he said.

The pound is trading close to a one-year high against the dollar.