Here are the most important news items that investors need to start their trading day:
1. Dow carries tear into Fed week
Stock futures ticked higher Monday morning heading into a week jammed with potential catalysts. The Dow Jones Industrial Average barely rose Friday and notched a 10-day win streak, its longest since 2017. The Federal Reserve will play a major role in whether the streak continues. The central bank is expected to hike interest rates Wednesday after a one-meeting pause in its push to rein in stubborn price increases. The personal consumption expenditures index, the Fed's favorite inflation gauge, is also due Friday. A rush of second-quarter earnings across technology, transportation, restaurants and media will also drive stocks this week. Follow live market updates here.
2. Earnings avalanche
The flurry of corporate earnings this week will provide a snapshot of how a range of sectors fared in the second quarter. With 18% of S&P 500 companies reporting as of Friday, earnings for the quarter had fallen 7.9% from prior-year period, but topped Wall Street's expectations by 7.4%. Big tech, which has driven most of the stock market's success this year, will dominate the week, with reports from Alphabet, Microsoft, Meta and Intel. McDonald's, Coca-Cola and Chipotle will offer commentary on how consumers are spending their food and beverage dollars in the face of persistent inflation. General Motors, Ford and Boeing will give a glimpse into the health of the transportation sector. Here are this week's key reports:
- Tuesday: General Motors (before the bell); Alphabet, Microsoft, Snap (after the bell)
- Wednesday: Coca-Cola, Boeing, AT&T (before the bell); Meta, Chipotle (after the bell)
- Thursday: McDonald's, Comcast, Southwest Airlines (before the bell); Ford, Intel (after the bell)
- Friday: Procter & Gamble (before the bell)
3. This Barbie is a box-office smash
"Barbenheimer" did not disappoint. Whether they watched one or both, in succession or apart, moviegoers flocked to Warner Bros.' "Barbie" and Universal's "Oppenheimer" in their opening weekends. Greta Gerwig's blockbuster was no child's play, scoring the highest opening of 2023 with a $155 million haul during its first three days in theaters as of Sunday afternoon. Christopher Nolan's "Oppenheimer" followed in the doll's high-heeled footsteps, drawing $80.5 million in the same time. The smash hits are expected to make this weekend the fourth-best ever at the box office, but its rank could rise even higher by the time final numbers come out Monday. Barbie maker Mattel will report earnings Wednesday, and should offer insight into how the film and the company's partnerships with retailers affected its results in the second quarter. (Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal and CNBC).
4. Goodbye bird, hello X
Elon Musk has overhauled Twitter yet again. People who go to Twitter.com on Monday will first see not the platform's iconic blue bird, but a capital "X." Musk, who has slashed staff and changed how Twitter regulates content since he led a $44 billion takeover of the social media company last year, tweeted Sunday that the "X" represents "the imperfections in us all that make us unique." The change comes as Twitter faces a threat in Meta's Threads. The Twitter rival used Instagram's massive user base to drive more than 100 million signups earlier this month. Meta now aims to improve the platform and lift flagging engagement for a product that Twitter quickly identified as a danger to its future.
5. Consequential labor talks
Key labor negotiations are taking place across the transportation sector — and underscore the power some workers gained during the Covid pandemic and its aftermath. American Airlines increased its contract offer to pilots by more than $1 billion on Friday to put it on par with the pay and benefits included in a preliminary deal between United Airlines and its pilots last week. At the same time, United Auto Workers and the largest U.S. automakers are holding critical labor talks ahead of a Sept. 14 deadline. Those negotiations could be shaped by the fact that the electric vehicle battery plants key to the industry's future are not covered by the agreement. UPS also looms large as the July 31 deadline for the company and its workers to reach a new contract approaches. Employees have authorized a strike as they seek better pay and working conditions at a company that has delivered more packages since the pandemic hit.
– CNBC's Tanaya Macheel, Robert Hum, Sarah Whitten, Leslie Josephs and Michael Wayland contributed to this report.
— Follow broader market action like a pro on CNBC Pro.
