09:00 AM EDT, 07/30/2026 (MT Newswires) -- (Updates with economic data, recent oil price movement, world markets' overview and corporate stock movements.)

US equity futures were higher pre-bell Thursday as traders took note of the Federal Reserve's decision to leave interest rates unchanged, as well as the latest round of earnings from major tech players Microsoft ( MSFT ) and Meta Platforms ( META ) .

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were 0.4% higher, S&P 500 futures were up 0.6%, and Nasdaq futures were 1.5% higher.

The Fed held its policy rate steady in a divided decision, as three officials called for policy tightening. The Federal Open Market Committee maintained the target range for the federal funds rate at 3.50% to 3.75%, marking its fifth consecutive pause. The committee reiterated its pledge to "deliver price stability" as inflation remained above the 2% target amid supply shocks.

Late Wednesday, Microsoft ( MSFT ) reported higher fiscal Q4 adjusted earnings and revenue, while Meta posted a decline in earnings and higher revenue for Q2.

Apple ( AAPL ) is expected to report its fiscal Q3 earnings after the market closes. Analysts polled by FactSet expect earnings of $1.89 per share on revenue of $109.04 billion.

Oil prices were lower, with front-month global benchmark North Sea Brent crude down 1.1% at $87.12 per barrel and US West Texas Intermediate crude 0.8% lower at $83.80 per barrel.

The June core personal consumption expenditures price index, the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation gauge, released at 8:30 am ET, slowed to 0.1% from a pace of 0.3% in the prior month and the expected 0.2% increase in estimates compiled by Bloomberg.

Initial jobless claims rose to 197,000 in the week ended July 25 from an upwardly revised 188,000 level in the previous week, compared with expectations for an increase to 200,000. Q2 GDP growth was recorded at a 1.5% annual rate, compared with expectations for 2%.

In other world markets, Japan's Nikkei closed 0.7% higher, Hong Kong's Hang Seng ended 0.2% higher, and China's Shanghai Composite finished 0.6% lower. Meanwhile, the UK's FTSE 100 was up 0.4%, and Germany's DAX index was 0.3% higher in Europe's early afternoon session.

In equities, Microsoft ( MSFT ) shares rose 9% after the company's fiscal Q4 results topped expectations, driven by a revenue surge in cloud computing platform Azure. Lam Research ( LRCX ) stock was up 13% after the company posted better-than-expected fiscal Q4 adjusted earnings and revenue, as well as issued Q1 guidance that surpassed analysts' consensus. Arm (ARM) shares were 11% higher after the company reported a fiscal Q1 beat for adjusted earnings and revenue. Starbucks ( SBUX ) stock was up 4.4% after the company's fiscal Q3 adjusted earnings and revenue surpassed expectations and its fiscal 2026 adjusted EPS outlook was boosted.

On the losing side, Meta stock was down nearly 10% after the company's Q2 earnings fell short of consensus estimates. Qualcomm ( QCOM ) shares fell 3.1% after the company reported lower fiscal Q3 adjusted earnings and revenue.