5 Things to Know Before the Stock Market Opens

News of the day for September 12, 2024

Investors will be focused on whether Adobe ( ADBE ) can keep its artificial intelligence (AI) -driven momentum when the software maker reports after the bell; August wholesale prices are due; SpaceX Polaris Dawn mission completes first commercial spacewalk; Norfolk Southern ( NSC ) fires Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Alan Shaw over a relationship with its legal chief; and China weakness sent global oil demand growth in the first half of the year to its lowest since the pandemic, the IEA says. U.S. stock futures are edging higher after major indexes surged Wednesday on a rally by Nvidia ( NVDA ). Here's what investors need to know today.

1. Adobe Expected to Post Rising Q3 Revenue, Profit

Adobe ( ADBE ) is expected by analysts to post rising third-quarter revenue and earnings from the year-ago period when it reports results after the bell, partly fueled by demand for artificial intelligence (AI) . Analysts are projecting quarterly revenue of $5.37 billion, up 10% year-over-year, and profit of $1.57 billion, up 12%, according to estimates compiled by Visible Alpha. The company could also provide updates on its AI integration and monetization efforts.

2. August Wholesale Prices Data Due

The Producer Price Index (PPI) for August is due at 8:30 a.m. ET, likely reinforcing investor expectations of an interest-rate cut by the Federal Reserve at its meeting next week . Sticky rents, even as overall consumer inflation cooled in August , has dampened expectations of an aggressive cut by the Fed. Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones Newswires expect wholesale prices to have grown monthly by 0.2% in August, up from 0.1% in July, while "core" PPI—which excludes volatile food and energy prices—is also seen having grown by 0.2%, down from 0.3% last month.

3. SpaceX Polaris Dawn Mission Completes First Commercial Spacewalk

The astronauts on board the Polaris Dawn flight from SpaceX that launched earlier this week spent time outside of their spacecraft Thursday morning, the first commercial spacewalk. The four-person crew is in the midst of a five-day orbit after launching Tuesday morning , and the company has said the group is orbiting higher above the Earth than any space exploration missions since the Apollo missions decades ago.

4. Norfolk Southern Fires CEO Over Relationship With Legal Chief

Norfolk Southern ( NSC ) fired CEO Alan Shaw over a relationship with the railroad freight firm's top legal officer. The company had been investigating allegations of misconduct against Shaw, and said Wednesday he had been fired because it found he broke company policies "by engaging in a consensual relationship" with Chief Legal Officer Nabanita Nag, who also has been let go. Shaw, who was terminated "for cause, effective immediately," will be succeeded by Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Mark George.

5. Oil Demand Growth Slowest Since Pandemic on China Weakness, IEA Says

Global oil demand in the first half of the year grew at the slowest level since 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic struck, according to the latest monthly report from the International Energy Agency (IEA ). The Paris-based organization attributed the slump to a "rapidly slowing China" and the country's transition to electric vehicles (EVs), adding that demand outside China remains "tepid at best." Crude oil futures have been hit recently as OPEC —a dominant coalition of oil-producing nations—cut back on its demand outlook and growth projections, and the IEA warned that OPEC and its allies "may be staring at a substantial surplus."

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