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Futures up: Dow 0.12%, S&P 500 0.07% Nasdaq 0.05%

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Netflix ( NFLX ) raises 2025 revenue guidance; shares down

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Crypto stocks up as House passes stablecoin legislation

(Updates with prices, analyst comment before the opening bell)

By Pranav Kashyap and Nikhil Sharma

July 18 (Reuters) -

Wall Street geared up for a subdued start on Friday, with

investors weighing a week of mixed economic signals and earnings

reports, while Netflix's ( NFLX ) blockbuster profit failed to spark much

excitement.

At 8:15 a.m. ET, S&P 500 E-minis were up 4.5

points, or 0.07%, Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 11.75

points, or 0.05%, and Dow E-minis were up 52 points, or

0.12%.

Wall Street's record-setting run pressed on overnight,

as the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq crawled to new

highs thanks to upbeat

retail sales

and

jobless claims

, signaling a healthy U.S. economy and giving the Federal

Reserve room to pause and watch for tariff-driven inflation.

Netflix ( NFLX )

rode the success

of "Squid Game" to trounce earnings forecasts and hike its

revenue outlook for the year, but its shares slipped 2.4% in

premarket trading.

Industrial heavyweight 3M ( MMM )

jumped

3.3% after raising its full-year profit outlook, crediting

aggressive cost cuts and a sharper focus on high-margin

products.

Meanwhile, American Express ( AXP )

outpaced

second-quarter profit estimates, buoyed by strong spending

from its affluent cardholders. Its shares rose 1.1%.

However, the S&P 500 and the Dow were on track to

eke out only modest gains this week, as investors navigated a

maze of mixed signals - robust retail sales, a spike in consumer

inflation, and stagnant producer prices for June.

With the August 1 tariff deadline looming, uncertainty

over President Donald Trump's trade policy lingered in the

background, even as corporate earnings and economic data took

center stage.

Adding to the jitters,

reports of a possible ouster

of Fed Chair Jerome Powell briefly rattled markets, though

Trump was quick to shoot down those reports.

"It's a bit of everything. Mixed economic data, tariffs,

Trump criticizing Powell creating a bit of confusion and

therefore a lack of direction in markets," said Daniela Hathorn,

senior market analyst at Capital.com.

Against this backdrop, traders now see a 57.9% chance of

a Federal Reserve rate cut in September, while a July move is

all but off the table, according to CME's FedWatch tool.

Meanwhile, investors were also eyeing the preliminary

reading for July consumer sentiment data later in the day.

Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller signaled on

Thursday that mounting economic risks and tame inflation have

him backing an interest rate cut by this month's end,

downplaying concerns that tariffs will fuel lasting price hikes.

As the second-quarter earnings season gets underway, early

results from 36 S&P 500 companies that reported, more than 80%

have topped Wall Street's earnings expectations, according to

LSEG I/B/E/S data.

Cryptocurrency stocks rose after the U.S. House of

Representatives passed a bill that would develop a regulatory

framework for cryptocurrencies.

Robinhood Markets ( HOOD ) and Coinbase Global ( COIN )

gained over 2.6% each, while Bitfarms rose 1.8% and Hut

8 ( HUT ) edged up 1%.

Chevron ( CVX ) will proceed with its $53 billion

acquisition of Hess, after it prevailed in a landmark

legal battle against larger rival Exxon Mobil ( XOM ) to gain

access to the largest oil discovery in decades.

Shares of Chevron ( CVX ) and Hess were up 3.4% and 7.5%,

respectively.