Stock index futures inch down as investors await more earnings

[Wall Street-Street Sign]
P_Wei/E+ via Getty Images

Stock index futures were slightly down on Tuesday, a day after Wall Street ended in the green, while investors awaited key earnings reports and the inflation report.

S&P 500 futures (SPX [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/SPX]) -0.1%, Nasdaq 100 futures (US100:IND [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/US100:IND]) were flat and Dow futures (INDU [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/INDU]) -0.2%.

Wall Street closed in the green on Monday, as traders positioned themselves ahead of a pivotal earnings week and the highly anticipated retail inflation report.

"The main catalyst was positive news on the trade side, coupled with signals that the U.S. government shutdown might come to an end soon," Deutsche Bank's Henry Allen said.

" The S&P 500 (+1.07%) continued its recovery, with the Magnificent 7 (+1.44%) leading the way, including a very strong performance for Apple (+3.94%) as it hit a new record," Allen added.

On the earnings side, companies such as Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) and Netflix (NFLX) will report on Tuesday, along with GE Aerospace (NYSE:GE), 3M Company (NYSE:MMM), General Motors (NYSE:GM), Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT), RTX (NYSE:RTX), and Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM).

Regarding the U.S. government shutdown, which is entering [https://seekingalpha.com/news/4505574-the-senate-needs-to-work-this-out-hasett-says-on-shutdown] 21 days now, National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett said on Monday that it is likely to end "sometime this week."

The September retail inflation report is expected to come out on October 24 despite the shutdown.

"Friday's delayed CPI report will be one of the few economic data points for the markets and the Federal Reserve to digest before its late October meeting and interest rate decision. While Friday's CPI may take on greater importance due to the government shutdown-driven data drought, we still expect the Fed to proceed with another interest rate cut at the late October meeting. We believe the Fed is still focused on the employment side of the equation, and it does not want to fall behind on that front," Rick Gardner, chief investment officer, RGA Investments said.

MARKET SNAPSHOT AS OF OCTOBER 21, 2025 (4:15 AM ET)

CATEGORY
INSTRUMENT (TICKER)
LEVEL
CHANGE
% CHANGE

INDICES
Dow Futures (INDU [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/INDU])
46,636.42
−70.16
−0.15%

S&P Futures (SPX [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/SPX])
6,731.65
−3.48
−0.05%

Nasdaq Futures (US100:IND [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/US100:IND])
25,134.62
−6.40
−0.03%

TREASURIES
U.S. 2-Year (US2Y [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/US2Y])
3.46%
−0.007
−0.20%

U.S. 5-Year (US5Y [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/US5Y])
3.57%
−0.011
−0.31%

U.S. 10-Year (US10Y [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/US10Y])
3.97%
−0.013
−0.33%

U.S. 30-Year (US30Y [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/US30Y])
4.56%
−0.014
−0.31%

COMMODITIES
Gold (XAUUSD:CUR [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/XAUUSD:CUR])
4,278.29
−79.50
−1.82%

Silver (XAGUSD:CUR [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/XAGUSD:CUR])
50.22
−2.11
−4.04%

Crude Oil (CL1:COM [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/CL1:COM])
56.83
−0.19
−0.34%

CRYPTO
Bitcoin (BTC-USD [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/BTC-USD])
107,894.54
−2,690.28
−2.43%

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