Stocks Rise Pre-Bell Ahead of Powell's Jackson Hole Speech

07:23 AM EDT, 08/22/2025 (MT Newswires) -- The benchmark US stock measures were trending higher before the opening bell Friday as traders await Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's speech for clues on the central bank's next policy moves.

The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq rose 0.2% each in premarket activity, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.3%. The indexes closed Thursday's trading session in the red, with the S&P 500 recording losses for the fifth consecutive day.

Powell is scheduled to speak at the Fed's annual economic symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, at 10 am ET. Traders will be closely monitoring his comments for any hints on a reduction in the central bank's benchmark lending rate at its meeting in September. Boston Fed President Susan Collins' remarks are due at 9 am.

Markets are currently pricing in a roughly 71% probability that the Federal Open Market Committee will reduce interest rates by 25 basis points next month, down from 75% on Thursday, with the remaining odds in favor of another pause, according to the CME FedWatch tool.

US Treasury yields were slightly higher in premarket action, with the two-year rate inclining 0.4 basis points to about 3.8% and the 10-year rate up 0.5 basis points to 4.34%.

Last week, official data showed that consumer inflation in the world's largest economy slowed down on a sequential basis in July, while producer prices rose at the fastest pace in about three years during the month.

Shares of Intuit (INTU) dropped 5.6% pre-bell, even though the financial technology platform reported fiscal fourth-quarter results above market expectations. Workday (WDAY) fell 4.4% following its latest quarterly results.

Zoom Communications (ZM) gained 5.3% early Friday as the video communication platform lifted its full-year outlook and reported a surprise increase in its fiscal second-quarter earnings. Ross Stores (ROST) advanced 2.2% as the discount retailer's fiscal second-quarter earnings came in above Wall Street's estimates. Tech bellwether Nvidia (NVDA) was down 1%.

BJ's Wholesale Club (BJ), RLX Technology (RLX) and Buckle (BKE) report their latest financial results before the bell, among others.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil edged down 0.1% to $67.58 a barrel before the open. The weekly Baker Hughes oil-and-gas rig count posts at 1 pm.

Gold slipped 0.3% to $3,372 per troy ounce, while bitcoin traded up 0.4% to $112,591.

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