Preview of US Stock Market | The three major stock index futures fluctuated in mixed directions as the Federal Reserve's "most favored inflation indicator" is about to be released. NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA.US) will announce its earnings after the market closes.

Pre-Market Market Trends 1. As of August 26 (Wednesday) before the market opens, U.S. stock index futures are mixed. As of this report, Dow futures are up 0.06%, S&P 500 futures are down 0.06%, and Nasdaq futures are down 0.24%. 2. As of this report, Germany's DAX index is up 0.29%, the UKs FTSE 100 index is up 0.03%, France's CAC 40 index is up 0.63%, and the Euro Stoxx 50 index is up 0.39%. 3. As of this report, WTI crude oil is down 2.11%, priced at $80.62 per barrel. Brent crude is down 2.02%, priced at $85.51 per barrel. Market News PCE data influences interest rate expectations, with inflation suspense pending ahead of Jackson Hole. The Federal Reserves most closely watched inflation indicatorthe July Personal Consumption Expenditures Price Indexwill be released at 8:30 PM Beijing time, providing a latest assessment of core price pressures. The market expects the overall PCE year-on-year increase to slightly drop to 3.6%, while core PCE is anticipated to remain at 3.3%. This data release is sensitive as it occurs just before the Federal Reserve Chairman's key speech at the Jackson Hole annual conference; the inflation reading will provide an important reference for the market to interpret his policy stance. Iran declares a temporary understanding on shipping routes in the Strait of Hormuz, limited to merchant vessels. Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Kalibaf stated that under a new understanding reached between Iran and Oman regarding shipping routes in the Strait of Hormuz, routes entering the Persian Gulf will pass through Iranian waters, while routes leaving the Persian Gulf will traverse both Omani and Iranian waters, with no military vessels allowed to cross the strait, permitting only merchant ships. Kalibaf stated that this agreement does not mean the Strait of Hormuz is open immediately, and the aforementioned arrangements are temporary, with negotiations for a new permanent route expected to begin within 30 to 60 days. Additionally, Iran and Oman have reportedly reached an agreement on revenue distribution from the Strait of Hormuz. Leading AI companies in the U.S. are intensively cutting prices. U.S. AI large models may spark a price war. OpenAI recently announced that the price of one of its AI large models will be reduced by over 20%, with the output price dropping to $20 per one million tokens. This is the second price cut for OpenAI models within less than a month. It is not the first American AI company to lower product prices recently. Earlier this month, Alphabet Inc. Class C (GOOGL.US) launched its new model, Gemini 3.7 Flash, at half the price of its predecessor. Anthropic also announced earlier this month that it has canceled its planned price increase, setting the initial promotional price as the permanent price. SoftBank plans to issue bonds of up to $20 billion to refinance bridge loans for OpenAI investments. SoftBank Group is in discussions with several investment banks to issue bonds worth $10 billion to $20 billion, potentially in both U.S. dollars and euros, with issuance possibly taking place as early as September. Related discussions are ongoing, and specific terms may change. The funds raised will partly be used to repay the $40 billion bridge loan taken earlier this year to invest in OpenAI. Founded and led by Masayoshi Son, SoftBank has a junk credit rating and is scheduled to invest nearly $65 billion in OpenAI before October, partly sourced from loans. Amazon.com, Inc. (AMZN.US), Apple Inc. (AAPL.US), Microsoft Corporation (MSFT.US), and Dell Technologies, Inc. Class C (DELL.US) collectively raise prices as institutions predict that global memory shortages may persist until 2027. The sharp increase in AI computing power demand has significantly raised storage chip prices, with upstream price increases being passed down to downstream consumers. Recently, Amazon.com, Inc. has raised prices for several hardware products. Before Amazon.com's price hikes, tech companies like Apple Inc., Microsoft Corporation, and Dell Technologies, Inc. Class C had already responded to cost pressures by raising product prices and reducing standard hardware memory configurations. Market research firm IDC warned earlier that the global memory shortage may continue until 2027; industry forecasts suggest that storage chip prices may gradually decline and stabilize after peaking around 2028. Stock News Amidst the token inference wave, NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA.US) faces scrutiny over performance and financing! The market is eager for Rubin to ignite the "$6 trillion" narrative. NVIDIA Corporation is set to announce its second-quarter results, with analysts expecting an adjusted EPS of $2.09 and revenue of approximately $92 billion, a year-on-year jump of 96%, with data center revenue projected to reach an astonishing $85.4 billion, growing 107% year-on-year. This earnings report serves not only as a performance test for the chip giant but also as a systematic stress test for the global AI capital expenditure cycle. The market will focus on growth quality, the transition to the Rubin architecture, and ecosystem financing risks. Additionally, the options market is factoring in a bidirectional volatility of approximately 6%-7% for the stock price following the earnings announcement, corresponding to a change in market capitalization of over $320 billion. Up to 30%! Moon's Dark Side reportedly in talks with U.S. cloud computing giants regarding revenue sharing for the Kimi K3 model. Sources revealed that Moon's Dark Side is negotiating revenue-sharing agreements with Microsoft Corporation, Amazon.com, Inc., and Alphabet Inc. Class C, aiming to allow these U.S. cloud computing giants to host its Kimi K3 model. If an agreement is reached, it may become the first significant revenue-sharing agreement between a Chinese AI company and major U.S. cloud computing firms. Sources indicate that Moon's Dark Side is seeking up to a 30% share. It has also been reported that Moon's Dark Side has signed similar agreements with smaller cloud platforms. Alibaba Group Holding Limited Sponsored ADR is also seeking revenue-sharing agreements with major users of its new open-source AI models. Samsung (SSNLF.US) and SK Hynix (SKHY.US) plan to increase supply of 8-layer HBM4 memory to NVIDIA Corporation in the second half of the year to ensure stable supply. Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix plan to increase their supply of 8-layer HBM4 memory to NVIDIA Corporation in the second half of this year. This arrangement is primarily influenced by NVIDIA Corporations supply strategy, aiming to ensure the stability of various types of HBM memory supply while also taking into account product heat management. It is understood that the 8-layer memory is very likely to become the flagship product of the next-generation HBM4E, highlighting its strategic position in the future high-performance computing field. Is Tesla, Inc. (TSLA.US) Chinas Shanghai data center vacant? The company responds: Its false news. Recently, a netizen revealed that Tesla, Inc.'s Shanghai data center, specifically prepared for the entry of FSD, has been vacant, with all related teams having withdrawn. An insider from Tesla, Inc. China responded, stating, It's false news. A check on Tesla, Inc.'s U.S. official site shows that China is still included in the list of regions where the FSD supervision version can be used. Meta (META.US) reportedly discusses a settlement during trials over a costly lawsuit with several state attorneys general. Sources disclosed that Meta has discussed the possibility of reaching a settlement during trials over a significant case with attorneys general from several U.S. states. The case accuses Meta of deliberately designing Facebook and Instagram to be addictive to teenagers. This case poses potential legal risks amounting to billions of dollars for Meta, as the 29 state attorneys general are seeking hefty financial penalties on behalf of the public and demanding mandatory changes to the platforms' operations. According to Meta's own estimates, if it loses in court, the company could face fines up to $1.4 trillion, an unprecedented figure that approaches its market value. If a settlement is reached, the amount may be much lower. Zoom (ZM.US) Q2 results exceed expectations, but Q3 guidance fails to boost investor confidence. Zoom's second-quarter revenue increased by 4.9% year-on-year to $1.277 billion, slightly above the analyst average estimate of $1.270 billion. Adjusted net profit was $464 million, down 1.5% from $471 million during the same period last year; adjusted EPS was $1.55, better than the analyst average expectation of $1.48. Zoom expects Q3 revenue to be between $1.275 billion and $1.280 billion, with a midpoint of $1.2775 billion, lower than the analyst average expectation of $1.280 billion; adjusted EPS for Q3 is expected to be between $1.46 and $1.48, with a midpoint of $1.47, below the analyst average estimate of $1.50. SJM (SJM.US) coffee price hikes boost performance, raising full-year profit forecast. SJM's first-quarter revenue and profit exceeded expectations. The adjusted EPS for the quarter was $3.24, far exceeding last year's $1.90; net sales increased by 5% to $2.22 billion, mainly benefiting from coffee product price hikes. The company raised its full-year profit forecast to $10.50 to $11 per share, above the market forecast of $10.07, while expecting full-year sales to decline by 1% to 2%, narrowing the previously forecasted decline. Kohl's (KSS.US) same-store sales trend improves, but stock price suffers sell-off post-earnings. Kohl's second-quarter net sales were $3.3 billion, down 0.9% year-on-year, with same-store sales decline narrowing to 0.9% from the previous quarter. The CEO stated that progress has been made in the transformation but admitted there is still critical work to be done. Due to receiving tariff refunds, the company raised its full-year performance guidance, expecting sales to remain flat to a decline of 1.5%, with adjusted EPS expectations raised from $1 to $1.60 to $1.80 to $2.40, above analyst expectations of $1.45. However, the stock price still dropped about 5% in pre-market trading on Wednesday. Li Auto, Inc. Sponsored ADR Class A (LI.US) Q2 revenue exceeds expectations, gross margin narrows to 11%, and Q3 guidance falls short of expectations. Li Auto, Inc. Sponsored ADR Class A Q2 revenue was 25.67 billion yuan, a year-on-year decline of 15%, slightly exceeding market expectations of 24.96 billion yuan; adjusted net loss was 1.50 billion yuan, compared to an adjusted net profit of 1.47 billion yuan in the same period last year. The Q3 revenue is expected to be between 26.6 billion and 28 billion yuan, with the midpoint approximately 17% lower than the market expectation of 32.26 billion yuan; the expected delivery volume is 95,000 to 100,000 vehicles, lower than the market estimate of about 121,900 vehicles. UP Fintech Holding Ltd. Sponsored ADR Class A (TIGR.US) Q2 revenue hits a historical high, showcasing the effectiveness of its internationalization strategy. UP Fintech Holding Ltd. Sponsored ADR Class A reported total revenue of $182.3 million in Q2 2026, a year-on-year increase of 31.4%, with both operating profit and net profit returning to profitability on a quarter-on-quarter basis. The company added 32,600 new deposit customers, with total client assets reaching $60.7 billion, while overseas markets have shown growth. The company continues to iterate on its products, expand its Hong Kong IPO underwriting business, and has initiated a share buyback program of around $5 million. Important Economic Data and Event Previews Beijing time 20:30: U.S. July personal income month-on-month, U.S. July PCE price index year-on-year, revised value of U.S. Q2 real GDP annualized quarterly rate, preliminary value of U.S. July durable goods orders month-on-month. Beijing time 22:30: U.S. EIA crude oil inventory change for the week ending August 21. Beijing time 23:45: 2027 FOMC voting member and Richmond Fed President Barkin will attend a seminar. Earnings Forecasts Thursday morning: NVIDIA Corporation, CrowdStrike (CRWD.US), HP Inc. (HPQ.US), Salesforce, Inc. (CRM.US), Synopsys, Inc. (SNPS.US), Okta (OKTA.US). Thursday pre-market: Best Buy Co., Inc. (BBY.US), Bilibili, Inc. Sponsored ADR Class Z (BILI.US), CSI Solar Co., Ltd. CECEP Solar Energy (CSIQ.US), Gaotu Techedu, Inc. Sponsored ADR Class A (GOTU.US), Baozun, Inc. Sponsored ADR Class A (BZUN.US), and Lotus (LOT.US).