Pre-market briefing Pre-Market Briefing for August 13, 2026
Today at a Glance
Prior Session Recap
New York stocks on the 12th ended mixed, with the Nasdaq up 0.54% and the S&P 500 up 0.26%, while the Dow slipped 0.04%. Technology led the indexes higher with a 1.49% gain, followed by Real Estate at 0.93%, while Materials and Consumer Discretionary fell 1.24% and 1.13%, respectively. $DELL jumped 9.87%, $SK Hynix ADRs climbed 9.01%, and $STX rallied 7.03%, as AI hardware stocks led the market, while $META and $MSFT lagged, dropping 3.38% and 2.26%, respectively.
Current Market Tone
Futures gains are modest. Yesterday's consumer price data came in close to expectations, leaving the market directionless as it waits for producer prices. The tone is not risk-off. The volatility index fell more than 5%, dropping into the mid-14s, and money flowed into AI hardware names such as $DELL and $MU. At the same time, $CSCO and $CRWV posted better-than-expected earnings yet declined 6% and 17%, respectively, in the pre-market, showing that strong numbers alone are not enough to lift the stock. The single biggest variable today is the producer price index release.
Pre-Market News Roundup
Today's Events
Macro Calendar
The PPI tracks the prices companies receive for goods and feeds into consumer prices with a lag. Expectations stand at +0.2%, against a prior reading of -0.3%. With the headline swinging from negative back into positive territory, a print above expectations could rattle rate-cut hopes.
Expectations are 4.9%, versus a prior 5.5%. The year-over-year pace is decelerating by 0.6 percentage points, and a print in line would support the view that inflationary pressure is gradually cooling.
The core measure strips out volatile food and energy components to capture the underlying trend. Expectations are +0.3%, versus a prior +0.2%. With the core running hotter than the headline, an above-consensus print here would be a concern.
Expectations are 4.2%, versus a prior 4.7%. Like the headline, the pace is decelerating, and this is one of the figures the Federal Reserve watches most closely.
This is the number of people who filed for unemployment benefits over the past week. Expectations are 200,000, versus a prior 190,000, indicating a mild uptick. Because it is released alongside the inflation data, conflicting signals between the two prints could whip pre-market futures around sharply.
Ex-Dividend
Stocks to Watch
$ANET closed yesterday at $210.50, up 6.39%, punching through the upper Bollinger Band, with its Relative Strength Index (a reading between 0 and 100 that reflects how strong recent upward momentum is) climbing to 69. With $CSCO, which shares the AI networking equipment market, sliding in the pre-market, it is worth checking right after the open whether yesterday's rally extends.
$BAC printed an RSI of 74 and broke above the upper Bollinger Band, making it the most overbought name on today's shortlist. The stock is at $64.81 and rose 1.27% yesterday. Bank earnings are highly sensitive to the interest-rate outlook, so today's PPI release will determine whether the gains hold or reverse.
$MSFT still has an elevated RSI of 71 yet closed yesterday down 2.26% at $492.43 — an overbought signal paired with a declining price. Stacked against yesterday's surge in hardware names like $DELL and $MU, this is the stock to watch for signs that AI-related money continues rotating from software to chips and equipment today.
Action Plan for Today
Stay calm today, and have a good session.
Back to ListDisclaimer: This content is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice. All investment responsibility lies with the investor.
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