Opening Comment — Friday, February 06, 2026
DJIA: 48,908.72, down 592.58
S&P 500: 6,798.40, down 84.32
NASDAQ: 22,540.59, down 363.99
Stocks higher ahead of consumer sentiment
Stock futures are higher Friday morning ahead of today’s economic releases, including preliminary February reading of consumer sentiment from the University of Michigan and December’s consumer credit data. As of 7:21 AM ET, the Dow and the S&P 500 Index are both rising 0.5%. The Nasdaq 100 is increasing 0.6% relative to fair value on the GLOBEX.
U.S. equities were lower on Thursday as the December Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey showed lower-than-projected job openings. Both initial jobless claims and continuing claims rose. The Challenger Report for January showed a sharp rise in announced job cuts, up 117.8% from last year. The Dow was down 1.2%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite fell 1.6%. The S&P 500 decreased 1.2% with nine of 11 sectors finishing in negative territory. The Consumer Staples sector was the top performer, rising 0.3%, while the Materials sector was the bottom performer, falling 2.8%.
Technical Analysis
As of midday Thursday, the S&P 500 Index is still in an uptrend, with resistance at the 50 day moving average (6,882) and 7,000, with support at the 200 day moving average (6,461).
On the data front, the University of Michigan’s preliminary February reading of consumer sentiment is forecasted to come in at 55.0, lower than the prior month’s 56.4. The one-year and five- to ten-year inflation expectations for February from the University of Michigan are expected to come in at 4.0% and 3.3%, respectively, similar to the prior month’s readings. Consumer credit is expected to have expanded by $8.0 billion in December, more than the prior month’s increase of $4.2 billion.
Across the pond, European stocks are mostly higher in mid-day trading as Germany’s industrial production for December registered a greater-than-expected decrease of 1.9% month-over-month, alongside an unexpected year-over-year (YOY) decline, falling by 0.6%. The country’s trade surplus widened more than expected in December as both exports and imports rose more than expected. Meanwhile, France’s trade deficit expanded in December.
Overnight in Asia, stocks were mixed as Japan’s preliminary composite leading index ticked up and the country’s household spending decreased more than expected in December, falling 2.6% YOY.
In FOREX trading, the U.S. dollar is little changed following the central banks of the European Union, England, India, and Mexico all holding their policy rates steady this week.
Over in the commodity pits, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil is 0.2% higher at $63.41/barrel.
In the metals complex, gold is 2.3% higher at $4,889.38/ounce.