US Stock Market Today: S&P 500 Futures Edge Higher As Inflation Worries Ease

The Morning Bull – US Market Morning Update Thursday, Jul, 16 2026

US stock futures are pointing higher this morning, with E-mini S&P 500 contracts up about 0.2%, as investors react to a rare piece of good news on inflation. Consumer prices fell 0.4% in June and core inflation, which strips out food and energy, was flat at 2.6% over the past year. In plain terms, the cost of living stopped climbing for a month and underlying pressures cooled. That helped pull the 10 year Treasury yield to around 4.57%, easing borrowing costs that affect mortgages, credit cards and company debt. The key question now is whether this inflation relief supports rate sensitive areas like tech and smaller US companies or pushes investors toward more defensive sectors such as utilities and dividend focused stocks.

With inflation cooling and rate sensitive sectors in focus, you can pinpoint income ideas with 10 dividend fortresses before yields shift again.

Top Movers

• PayPal Holdings (PYPL) jumped 17.21% after reports of a $53b takeover bid from Stripe and Advent.
• BlackRock (BLK) gained 6.63% after Q2 earnings and higher analyst price targets highlighted operating leverage.
• CBRE Group (CBRE) rose 6.22%.

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Top Losers

• Dell Technologies (DELL) declined 9.80%.
• Cerebras Systems (CBRS) declined 9.71%.
• Progressive (PGR) declined 9.43% after analysts trimmed price targets and flagged slower growth and higher loss ratios.

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On The Radar

Earnings from UnitedHealth, Netflix and a cluster of regional banks will anchor attention alongside fresh US producer price data.

• Healthcare bellwether: UnitedHealth Group (UNH) reports Q2 results Pre-Market on Thursday, with a focus on medical costs and 2026 guidance.
• Streaming focus: Netflix (NFLX) posts Q2 earnings on Thursday after the close, highlighting subscriber trends and content spending.
• Logistics and real estate: Prologis (PLD) Q2 results on Thursday will highlight warehouse leasing and rent trends tied to global trade.
• US banks: U.S. Bancorp, State Street, Citizens Financial, General Electric linked finance peers report Thursday, providing an update on credit quality and fee income.
• Regional banks: Regions Financial, Truist Financial, Fifth Third Bancorp, Travelers Companies Friday earnings will focus on loan demand and deposit mix.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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