OPENING CALL

Stock futures were falling on Thursday ahead of a big day for corporate results, headlined by Walmart.

The stock has been on a tear as the company hones its e-commerce strategy. Earnings are also due from Alibaba, Wayfair and Hasbro ahead of the open.

Bond yields fell as investors continued to parse the latest evidence on Federal Reserve thinking and looked ahead to fresh labor market data.

"The minutes of the January FOMC meeting indicate that participants are in no rush to adjust policy rates, and that cuts will likely not resume until the Committee is confident that inflation has made further progress or that the labor market has weakened," Barclays said.

Fresh news on the health of the labor market will be delivered at 8:30 a.m. Eastern, when the weekly initial jobless claims report is released.

The data will be scanned for evidence of how much recent government layoffs, as part of the Department of Government Efficiency campaign, are adding to the unemployed.

Stocks to Watch:

Carvana revenue per vehicle sold fell 4.5%. Shares dropped 9% ahead of the open.

Grab's annual guidance disappointed investors. Its U.S.-listed shares fell 7%.

NioCorp Developments said an unauthorized third-party accessed its information systems, resulting in misdirected vendor payments valued at about $500,000. Shares fell 5.3%.

Palantir stock fell more than 2.5%, having slid 10% during Wednesday's main session. The moves came after media reports of potential U.S. defense budget cuts.

Vimeo reported a drop in profit. Shares fell 13%.

Xos' trailer-mounted EV charging unit has been added to the General Services Administration's schedule. Shares rose 40%.

Watch For:

Weekly Jobless Claims; EIA Weekly Petroleum Report; Fed's Goolsbee and Musalem to speak at events. Earnings from Walmart, Alibaba

Today's Headlines/Must Reads:

- Trump's Attack on Zelenzky Signals New World Order Taking Shape

- Xi Is Trying to Secure the Devotion of China's Military

-The Stock Market's Calm May Be a Deep Fake. Why March and April Could Be Miserable.

MARKET WRAPS

Forex:

The dollar's recent pullback was unlikely to mark the start of a sustained reversal, TD Securities said, adding that it presents a buying opportunity.

The dollar stands to benefit from the fact the market is too optimistic about tariffs and is underpricing global macroeconomic and geopolitical uncertainty.

The U.S. is less exposed to trade shocks, while high yields and positive economic growth provide a cushion for the dollar.

Strong inflation and economic data momentum also favor the dollar along with rising risks of global stagflation, or weak growth combined with high inflation.

ING said the DXY's fall was largely led by a stronger Japanese yen , rather than a broad-based decline.

Yesterday's move by Trump, calling Ukraine President Zelensky a dictator and implying that Ukraine started the war, weakened the euro, SEB said.

"The prospects for continued U.S. support look increasingly bleak, and many European leaders are expressing concern about a deteriorating alliance with the U.S."

Sterling could come under pressure if U.K. government bonds fall in tandem with European bonds on expectations for increased defense spending, ING said.

Life would become even harder for the U.K. Treasury chief ahead of her March budget, as "Higher gilt yields mean a higher bar for a credible spending plan and questions whether she can present a plan that defers spending cuts to the later years."

Reeves might need to deliver deeper spending cuts and U.K. assets markets will get hit if her plans don't look credible.

Neither scenario is good for sterling and the currency is unlikely to hold near-term gains above $1.26, it added.

Energy:

Oil prices eased.

Trump said he was considering tariffs of 25% or more on automobiles, semiconductors and pharmaceutical products--a move that traders fear could hurt the global economy and reduce fuel demand.

Meanwhile, crude stocks rose by 3.34 million barrels last week, according to reports citing figures from the American Petroleum Institute ahead of official data later.

Crude futures settled higher in the previous trading session, supported by supply uncertainties amid disruptions to Kazakhstan's oil flows and fresh EU sanctions on Russia.

Metals:

Gold futures rose to a new record.

The metal's near 12% rise year to date surpasses even our above-consensus expectations, MUFG said.

The rally has shrugged off a higher U.S. dollar and yields as well as growing Russia-Ukraine war settlement prospects, it added, and it keeps its end-of-year spot gold estimate of $3,080 an ounce, but said there was clear upside potential.

The bullion looks well-positioned to hedge risks from Trump's policies and if the U.S. takes a more aggressive approach to tariffs, raising inflation risks, gold could be viewed as a debasement hedge, it said.

In a more benign scenario, gold will still benefit from falling yields and increased interest-rate cut expectations, it added.

Base metals also rose.

The EU has agreed on a 16th package of sanctions against Russia, expected to be adopted Monday and including a primary aluminum import ban, ING said.

The ban will be phased in a year from the official adoption of the package, though effects are likely to be limited, it added as EU imports of Russian aluminum have already fallen, with European buyers self-sanctioning since the invasion of Ukraine.

Russia now accounts for around 6% of European imports of primary aluminum, half of 2022 levels--the shortfall has mostly been covered by Middle Eastern, Indian, and Southeast Asian imports, and this trend is likely to continue, it added.

TODAY'S TOP HEADLINES

Apple Keeps iPhone From Going Too Downmarket

Apple's never been great about appealing to bargain hunters. Plus, someone's got to pay for that new iPhone chip.

The world's most valuable company announced the newest addition to its largest business on Wednesday. The iPhone 16e succeeds the iPhone SE models as the cheapest smartphones in the company's lineup-except they are no longer that cheap. The new iPhones start at $599, compared with the $429 starting price of the most recent SE version.

Hydrogen-Powered Big Rigs Face a Reckoning

The bankruptcy of onetime green-energy favorite Nikola is puncturing hopes for hydrogen in trucking.

Nikola was the most high-profile of several startups and legacy truck makers vying to produce hydrogen fuel-cell big rigs on the promise that the zero-emissions technology had significant advantages over battery-electric vehicles.

ECB Monitoring Financial Deregulation in U.S. With 'Concern', Says Rehn

The European Central Bank is following moves to loosen regulation of the U.S. financial system with "concern," a senior official told European lawmakers Thursday.

Trump administration officials are discussing plans to curtail and combine the power of banking regulators, and have already taken aim at one financial regulator, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

U.S. Faces Obstacles on Road to Supplying the World's Natural Gas

President Trump's decision to lift the pause on new approvals for liquefied natural gas export terminals has generated enthusiasm about the prospects of the U.S. expanding global supply of the fuel.

There's little doubt the U.S., already the world's top natural gas producer and exporter of LNG, will continue to increase its output. However, global market dynamics, rising costs and increased competition from Qatar will affect exactly how much- and where-this fuel goes. Qatar aims to double its own LNG output by the end of the decade.

Trump Weighs Direct Payments to Americans From DOGE Savings

MIAMI-President Trump said he is considering using a portion of the savings from Elon Musk's cost-cutting initiative to provide direct payments to Americans.

"We're thinking about giving 20% back to the American citizens and 20% down to pay back debt," Trump said at the FII Priority summit, a gathering of business and tech executives sponsored by Saudi Arabia's sovereign-wealth fund. "If it were a real-estate balance sheet, the debt is tiny, but we still, we still want to pay it down."

Trump's FBI Pick Stands to Make Millions From Fashion Brand Shein

When the China-founded fashion company Shein goes public as soon as this year, it will mint billionaires and millionaires out of those fortunate enough to get shares early in the trendy retailer.

Among the winners will be Kash Patel, the confidant of President Trump picked to run the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Patel consulted for Shein's parent company, Elite Depot, for nine months last year and was compensated with stock valued at between $1 million and $5 million, according to a financial disclosure report he filed this year.

Write to clare.kinlochc@wsj.com

TODAY IN CANADA

Earnings:

Altus Group 4Q

Calibre Mining 4Q

Cameco Corp 4Q

Canfor Corp 4Q

Canfor Pulp Products 4Q

Cascades

Cenovus Energy 4Q

Centerra Gold 4Q

Eldorado Gold 4Q

First Majestic Silver 4Q

Hydro One Limited 4Q

IAMGOLD 4Q

Loblaw Companies 4Q

Lundin Gold 4Q

Newmont 4Q

Polaris Renewable Energy 4Q

Teck Resources 4Q

TransAlta 4Q

Vox Royalty 4Q

Economic Indicators $(ET)$:

0830 Dec Employment Insurance

0830 Jan New Housing Price Index

0830 Industrial product and raw materials price indexes

Stocks to Watch:

Air Canada: S&PGR Affirms 'BB' Rating; Outlook Stable

B2Gold 4Q Loss/Shr 1c; 4Q Rev $499.8M

Calibre Mining 4Q Rev $203.0M; 4Q EPS 2C

Chorus Aviation 4Q Adj Basic EPS From Continuing Ops C$0.39 Vs. C$0.06

Crombie REIT 4Q Property Revenue C$121.6M

Dream Residential REIT Board Initiated a Strategic Review Process to Identify, Evaluate and Pursue Strategic Alternatives; 4Q Net $4.22M; 4Q FFO 17c/Shr; NAV per Unit was $13.39 as at December 31, 2024

InPlay Oil to Buy Cardium Light Oil Focused Assets in Pembina Area of Alberta From Obsidian Energy for About C$309M; Sees Pembina Deal Helping Funds Flow, Free Funds Flow per Share

Lundin Mining 4Q Rev $1.02B; 4Q Loss $159.6M; 2024 Rev $4.12B; Victoria McMillan appointed to Board of Directors; Juliana Lam Has Informed Company of Plans to Retire, Won't Stand for Re-Election at Annual Meeting

Manulife Financial: Nancy Carroll and John Montalbano Appointed to Manulife's Bd of Directors

New Gold 4Q Rev $262.2M; 4Q EPS 7c; 4Q Adj EPS 7c; 4Q Consolidated Gold Production 80,438 Ounces; 4Q Consolidated Copper Production 14.5M Pounds

Nutrien Increases Quarterly Dividend And Announces Intent To Launch A New Share Repurchase Program; 4Q EPS 23c; 4Q Sales $5.079B; 4Q Adj EPS 31c

Osisko Gold Royalties 4Q EPS C$0.04; 4Q Rev C$56.7M; Expects GEOs Earned to Range Between 80,000-88,000 in 2025 at Avg Cash Margin of Approximately 97%

Pulse Seismic Receives TSX Approval for Normal Course Issuer Bid and Enters Into Automatic Shr Purchase Plan; May Purchase Up to 2.77M Shrs, Representing 10 % of Public Float

Sienna Senior Living 4Q EPS C$0.30.4c; 4Q Rev C$246.3M; 4Q OFFO Per Shr C$0.356

Southern Cross Gold Initiated at Outperform (Speculative Risk) by RBC Capital Markets with A$4.20/Share Price Target

Spartan Delta 4Q EPS C$0.03 Vs. EPS C$0.64; FY EPS C$0.20 Vs. EPS C$3.82; 4Q Oil & Gas Sales C$83.5M Vs C$85.5M; FY Oil & Gas Sales C$301.6M Vs C$652.8M

Taseko Mines 4Q Rev C$167.8M; 4Q Loss/Shr C$0.07; 2024 Rev C$608.1M; 2024 EPS C$0.19

Expected Major Events for Thursday

00:01/UK: BRC Consumer Sentiment Monitor

05:00/JPN: Jan Convenience Store Sales

07:00/GER: Jan PPI

11:00/UK: Jan Aluminium Production report

11:00/FRA: 4Q OECD Quarterly National Accounts: GDP growth

11:00/UK: Feb CBI Industrial Trends Survey

13:00/RUS: Weekly International Reserves

13:30/US: Feb Philadelphia Fed Business Outlook Survey

13:30/CAN: Jan Industrial product and raw materials price indexes

13:30/CAN: Jan New Housing Price Index

13:30/CAN: Dec Employment Insurance

13:30/US: 02/15 Unemployment Insurance Weekly Claims Report - Initial Claims

15:00/US: Jan Leading Indicators

15:30/US: 02/14 EIA Weekly Natural Gas Storage Report

17:00/US: 02/14 EIA Weekly Petroleum Status Report

21:30/US: Federal Discount Window Borrowings

21:30/US: Foreign Central Bank Holdings

23:30/JPN: Jan CPI (Nation), CPI ex-food (Nation)

All times in GMT. Powered by Kantar Media and Dow Jones.

Expected Earnings for Thursday

Americold Realty Trust Inc (COLD) is expected to report $0.11 for 4Q.

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc (AUP-T,AUPH) is expected to report $-0.09 for 4Q.

Builders FirstSource Inc (BLDR) is expected to report $1.73 for 4Q.

Cameco Corp (CCJ,CCO.T) is expected to report $0.38 for 4Q.

Cascades Inc (CAS.T) is expected to report for 4Q.

Cenovus Energy Inc (CVE,CVE.T) is expected to report $0.25 for 4Q.

CenterPoint Energy Inc $(CNP)$ is expected to report $0.41 for 4Q.

Choice Hotels International Inc $(CHH)$ is expected to report $1.29 for 4Q.

City Office REIT Inc (CIO) is expected to report $-0.08 for 4Q.

CoreCard Corp (CCRD) is expected to report $0.07 for 4Q.

Curis Inc $(CRIS)$ is expected to report for 4Q.

Dana Inc $(DAN)$ is expected to report $0.05 for 4Q.

DigitalBridge Group Inc $(DBRG)$ is expected to report $-0.03 for 4Q.

Dun & Bradstreet Holdings Inc $(DNB)$ is expected to report $0.09 for 4Q.

Dynatronics Corp (DYNT) is expected to report for 2Q.

EPAM Systems Inc $(EPAM)$ is expected to report $1.82 for 4Q.

Garrett Motion Inc $(GTX)$ is expected to report $0.28 for 4Q.

HF Sinclair Corp $(DINO)$ is expected to report $-0.81 for 4Q.

Hasbro Inc $(HAS)$ is expected to report $0.27 for 4Q.

Hydro One Ltd (H.T) is expected to report $0.32 for 4Q.

IDACORP Inc $(IDA.AU)$ is expected to report $0.63 for 4Q.

Integer Holdings Corp $(ITGR)$ is expected to report $1.15 for 4Q.

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals - Class A $(IRWD)$ is expected to report $0.08 for 4Q.

Kaltura Inc $(KLTR)$ is expected to report $-0.05 for 4Q.

LKQ Corp $(LKQ)$ is expected to report $0.66 for 4Q.

Nikola Corp $(NKLA)$ is expected to report for 4Q.

Pediatrix Medical Group Inc (MD) is expected to report $0.33 for 4Q.

Primo Brands Corp (PRMB,PRMW-T) is expected to report for 4Q.

Repligen Corp $(RGEN)$ is expected to report $0.20 for 4Q.

Sabre Corp $(SABR)$ is expected to report $-0.15 for 4Q.

Shake Shack Inc (SHAK) is expected to report $0.25 for 4Q.

Shenandoah Telecommunications Co (SHEN) is expected to report $-0.10 for 4Q.

Somnigroup International Inc (TPX) is expected to report $0.56 for 4Q.

Southern Co $(SO)$ is expected to report $0.53 for 4Q.

Targa Resources Corp (TRGP) is expected to report $1.93 for 4Q.

Teck Resources Ltd - Class B (TECK,TECK.A.T,TECK.B.T) is expected to report $0.24 for 4Q.

Tripadvisor Inc $(TRIP)$ is expected to report $0.03 for 4Q.

Ultralife Corp $(ULBI)$ is expected to report $0.13 for 4Q.

Walmart Inc $(WMT)$ is expected to report $0.65 for 4Q.

Wayfair Inc (W) is expected to report $-0.85 for 4Q.

Powered by Kantar Media and Dow Jones.

ANALYST RATINGS ACTIONS

Bio-Techne Cut to Neutral From Outperform by Baird

Brighthouse Financial Raised to Equal-Weight From Underweight by Wells Fargo

Capital One Raised to Buy From Neutral by B of A Securities

CervoMed Raised to Buy From Hold by D. Boral Capital

Essential Props Realty Cut to Neutral From Buy by B. Riley Securities

Glaukos Raised to Outperform From Neutral by Mizuho

NetApp Raised to Neutral From Underperform by B of A Securities

Supernus Pharmaceuticals Cut to Neutral From Overweight by Cantor Fitzgerald

Tactile Systems Tech Cut to Neutral From Buy by B. Riley Securities

Travelers Raised to Outperform From Market Perform by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

Valmont Industries Cut to Neutral From Buy by DA Davidson

Workday Cut to Equal-Weight From Overweight by Morgan Stanley

This article is a text version of a Wall Street Journal newsletter published earlier today.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 20, 2025 05:58 ET (10:58 GMT)

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