07:28 AM EDT, 08/15/2025 (MT Newswires) -- The benchmark US stock measures were mostly pointing higher before the open Friday as traders await last month's retail sales report and assess hotter-than-expected producer prices data that tempered expectations for a big interest rate cut next month.

The S&P 500 edged up 0.1% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.7% in premarket activity, while the Nasdaq declined 0.1%. The Nasdaq and the Dow finished Thursday's trading session slightly in the red, while the S&P 500 recorded its third consecutive day of gains.

The retail sales report for July is scheduled to be released at 8:30 am ET. On Thursday, official data showed that producer prices in the US rose at the fastest pace in about three years in July, potentially fueling worries that tariffs could heat up inflationary pressures in the coming months.

Earlier in the week, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that consumer inflation in the world's largest economy slowed down last month on a sequential basis, while the annual core rate jumped above 3%.

Following CPI data, markets moved to fully expect a 25-basis-point rate cut by the Federal Reserve next month, with some even betting on a bigger, 50-basis-point reduction. Those expectations for a larger cut have now been reversed, according to the CME FedWatch tool.

Traders have taken a "more subdued" view of next month's Fed policy decision, Macquarie said in a Thursday report. "(Twenty-four) hours ago, by contrast, the talk on the street was of a 'mega' rate cut," according to the investment firm.

St. Louis Fed President Alberto Musalem told CNBC on Thursday that "it's too early to say exactly what policy I will be able to support" at the September meeting. A potential 50-basis-point rate reduction is "unsupported by the current state of the economy and the outlook," Musalem reportedly said.

Treasury yields were down in premarket action, with the two-year rate retreating 1.1 basis points to 3.73% and the 10-year rate inching 0.2 basis points lower to 4.29%.

Friday's economic calendar also has the Empire State manufacturing index for August and the import and export prices report for July at 8:30 am. Last month's industrial production report is out at 9:15 am, followed by the preliminary University of Michigan consumer sentiment report for the current month at 10 am.

Shares of UnitedHealth ( UNH ) jumped 12% pre-bell after Berkshire Hathaway ( BRK/A ) (BRK.A, BRK.B) disclosed in a filing that it purchased over 5 million shares in the health insurance giant in the second quarter. Intel ( INTC ) gained 3.2% following a Bloomberg News report that the Trump administration is in talks to acquire a stake in the chipmaker.

Applied Materials ( AMAT ) dropped 15% as the semiconductor equipment maker issued a fiscal fourth-quarter outlook below Wall Street's estimates.

Flowers Foods ( FLO ) is expected to report its latest financial results before the bell, among others.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil decreased 0.7% to $63.52 a barrel before the opening bell. The weekly Baker Hughes oil-and-gas rig count posts at 1 pm.

Gold nudged up 0.2% to $3,389 per troy ounce, while bitcoin advanced 0.6% to $118,978.