The broad market exchange-traded fund SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) was up 0.8% and the actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) was 1.2% higher in Friday's premarket activity, ahead of key inflation data.
US stock futures were also higher, with S&P 500 Index futures up 0.8%, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures advancing 0.6% and the Nasdaq futures gaining 0.1% before the start of regular trading.
The June personal consumption expenditures core price index, or the PCE core, will be released at 8:30 am ET. The University of Michigan consumer sentiment bulletin for July will be posted at 10 am ET, and the Baker Hughes domestic oil-and-gas rig count at 1 pm ET.
In premarket action, bitcoin was up 4% and the cryptocurrency fund ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO) was 4.2% higher.
Power Play:
Consumer
The Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLP) was up 0.4%, while the Vanguard Consumer Staples Fund (VDC) was inactive. The iShares US Consumer Staples ETF (IYK) advanced 0.2%, and the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLY) was inactive. The VanEck Retail ETF (RTH) was inactive, while the SPDR S&P Retail ETF (XRT) was up by 0.1%.
Carter's (CRI) shares traded down more than 12% pre-bell after the company reported lower-than-expected fiscal Q2 net sales and released fiscal Q3 and 2024 guidance that trailed analyst expectations.
Winners and Losers:
Financial
Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLF) gained 0.7%. Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS) was up nearly 2%, while its bearish counterpart Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ) was 1.6% lower.
NatWest Group (NWG) stock was up nearly 6% pre-bell Friday after the company reported in a filing with the London Stock Exchange that its subsidiary National Westminster Bank is acquiring 2.5 billion pound sterling ($3.22 billion) worth of prime UK residential mortgages from Metro Bank.
Industrial
Industrial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLI) advanced 1.1% while the Vanguard Industrials Index Fund (VIS) and the iShares US Industrials ETF (IYJ) were inactive.
3M (MMM) stock gained more than 5% before the opening bell after the company reported Q2 adjusted earnings of $1.93 per diluted share, up from $1.39 a year earlier.
Energy
The iShares US Energy ETF (IYE) was inactive, while the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE) was up by 0.1%.
Baytex Energy (BTE) stock was down 2.7% before Friday's opening bell after the company said its Q2 profit fell by half even as sales almost doubled.
Health Care
The Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLV) retreated marginally by 0.01%. The Vanguard Health Care Index Fund (VHT) was up 0.1% while the iShares US Healthcare ETF (IYH) was inactive. The iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) was 0.6% higher.
Centene (CNC) stock was up nearly 2% premarket after the company reported higher Q2 results and raised its 2024 forecast.
Technology
Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLK) advanced 1.5%, and the iShares US Technology ETF (IYW) was 0.7% higher, while the iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF (IGM) was up 1.6%. Among semiconductor ETFs, SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF (XSD) was down 0.4%, while the iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX) rose by 2.5%.
CrowdStrike (CRWD) shares were up nearly 2% in recent premarket activity after the company said over 97% of Windows sensors were back online as of Thursday, a week after the firm issued a routine update containing a bug that triggered a global IT outage.
Commodities
Front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil lost 0.4% to $77.95 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Natural gas was down 0.6% at $2.03 per 1 million British Thermal Units. United States Oil Fund (USO) fell 0.2%, while the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) was nearly 0.1% lower.
Gold futures for December were up 0.8% to $2,419.90 an ounce on the Comex, while silver futures fell 0.2% to $27.93 an ounce. SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) gained 0.5%, and iShares Silver Trust (SLV) was 0.2% lower.
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