07:15 AM EDT, 08/21/2025 (MT Newswires) -- US equity markets were pointing lower before the open Thursday as investors parsed minutes of the Federal Reserve's July policy meeting and prepare for Chair Jerome Powell's speech on Friday.

The S&P 500 decreased 0.2%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.4% and the Nasdaq was off 0.1% in premarket activity. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq closed the previous trading session down, with the former recording its fourth consecutive day of losses, while the Dow closed slightly up.

A majority of Fed officials saw potential inflation pressures outweighing risks to the labor market, while policymakers indicated that it would take time to gain more clarity on the exact impact of tariffs on prices, minutes of the central bank's July 29-30 meeting showed Wednesday.

Powell is scheduled to speak in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, on Friday. Traders will be assessing his comments for any hints on a reduction in the central bank's benchmark lending rate at its meeting in September.

Markets are pricing in a roughly 79% probability that the Federal Open Market Committee will reduce interest rates by 25 basis points next month, down from 82% on Wednesday, with the remaining odds in favor of another pause, according to the CME FedWatch tool.

US Treasury yields were trending higher in premarket action, with the two-year rate rising 1.6 basis points to 3.76% and the 10-year rate increasing 1.4 basis points to 4.31%.

Retail giant Walmart ( WMT ) reports its latest financial results before the bell, along with Full Truck Alliance ( YMM ) , Bilibili ( BILI ) and Miniso ( MNSO ) . Intuit (INTU), Workday (WDAY), Ross Stores ( ROST ) and Zoom Communications ( ZM ) release earnings after the markets close.

Shares of Target ( TGT ) dipped 0.4% pre-bell after closing Wednesday with a 6.3% drop. The retailer affirmed its full-year outlook and announced a new chief executive on Wednesday, while maintaining a cautious approach amid tariff-related headwinds. Nordson ( NDSN ) climbed 5.5% after the precision technology company reported fiscal third-quarter results above market estimates.

Coty's ( COTY ) stock tumbled 21% pre-bell as the beauty company recorded a wider fiscal fourth-quarter loss and a year-over-year decline in sales.

Thursday's economic calendar has the weekly jobless claims bulletin and the Philadelphia Fed manufacturing index for August at 8:30 am ET, followed by the purchasing managers' index report from S&P Global ( SPGI ) for the same month at 9:45 am. The existing home sales report for July is out at 10 am.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil was up 1.1% at $63.42 a barrel before the opening bell. Commercial crude stockpiles in the US declined more than expected last week, according to data from the Energy Information Administration Wednesday.

Gold declined 0.3% to $3,379 per troy ounce, while bitcoin fell 0.6% to $113,393.