Dow Jones futures edge higher on upbeat Netflix’s earnings, Michigan sentiment data eyed

Dow Jones futures trade marginally higher during the European trading session, extend its winning streak for the third trading day on Friday. United States (US) equities are buoyed by strong second-quarter earnings show from the streaming platform company Netflix.

At the time of writing, Dow30 futures ticks up 0.13% to near 44,550, S&P 500 futures gain six points and rises above 6,300.

During closed market hours, the streaming giant trades 1.9% higher to near $1,274. Revenues and Profit After Tax (PAT) margins of the company beat estimates, according to CNBC. “Year-over-year revenue growth was primarily a function of more members, higher subscription pricing and increased ad revenue,” the company said in a statement. Additionally, the firm has also raised revenue guidance for the current year to a range between $44.8 billion and $45.2 billion, slightly higher from $43.5-$44.5 billion, which it delivered in letter to shareholders following results of last quarter of 2024.

In Friday’s session, investors will closely monitor quarterly earnings from American Express and 2M.

Meanwhile, stronger-than-projected Retail Sales data for June has also improved demand for US equities. The Retail Sales data, a key measure of consumer spending, rose at a faster pace of 0.6% on month, compared to estimates of 0.1%. Upbeat US Retail Sales data signaled that the tariff-driven inflation has failed to restrict households’ spendings. In May, the consumer spending measure declined by 0.9%.

Going forward, market expectations for the Federal Reserve’s (Fed) monetary policy outlook will remain a key driver for the US indices.

According to the CME FedWatch tool, the probability for the Fed to cut interest rates in the September meeting has reduced to 58% from 70.4% seen a week ago. The tool also shows that the Fed is almost certain to leave interest rates steady in the range of 4.25%-4.50% in the policy meeting later this month.

Contrary to market expectations, Fed Governor Christopher Waller continues to argue in favor of reducing interest rates in the July policy meeting, citing downside risks to economy and labor market. “The Fed should cut interest rates 25 basis points at July meeting as rising risks to economy and employment favour easing policy rate,” Waller said.

On the data front, investors await preliminary Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index (CSI) data for July, which will be published at 14:00 GMT. The sentiment data is expected to have improved slightly to 61.5 from 60.7 in June, a scenario that is favorable for demand of US equities.