07:30 AM EDT, 07/21/2025 (MT Newswires) -- The benchmark US stock measures were pointing higher before the opening bell Monday as investors brace for a busy week of corporate earnings.

The S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2% each in premarket activity, while the Nasdaq added 0.3%. The Dow finished Friday's trading session in the red, the S&P 500 was nearly flat, while the Nasdaq notched a new closing high for the fifth day in a row.

With no major economic report scheduled for Monday, investors will be awaiting the latest financial results of several major companies, including Google ( GOOG ) parent Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL) and electric vehicle maker Tesla (TSLA) on Wednesday. Coca-Cola (KO), Philip Morris International ( PM ) , International Business Machines ( IBM ) , T-Mobile US ( TMUS ) , AT&T ( T ) , Honeywell International ( HON ) , Intel ( INTC ) , HCA Healthcare ( HCA ) and Charter Communications ( CHTR ) are also scheduled to report earnings this week.

Verizon Communications ( VZ ) , Roper Technologies ( ROP ) and Domino's Pizza (DPZ) will announce quarterly results early Monday, among others. NXP Semiconductors (NXPI) is slated to release its earnings after the markets close.

US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick reportedly said Sunday that the beginning of next month is a "hard deadline" for countries to start paying tariffs to the US. "Nothing stops countries from talking to us after Aug. 1, but they're going to start paying the tariffs," Lutnick said in an interview with CBS News, according to a CNBC report.

Additionally, Lutnick told CBS he was confident that the US can secure a trade deal with the European Union, Reuters reported. Last week, the Financial Times reported that President Donald Trump is advocating for a minimum tariff of 15% to 20% on EU goods, up from a baseline tariff of 10%.

US Treasury yields fell in premarket action, with the two-year rate retreating 2.7 basis points to 3.85% and the 10-year rate declining 5.1 basis points to 4.38%.

Preliminary results from a University of Michigan survey on Friday showed that US consumer sentiment rose in July to the highest level in five months, while year-ahead inflation expectations dropped for a second month in a row.

Shares of Block (XYZ) jumped 9.5% pre-bell after it was announced that the company will be joining the S&P 500 index, effective Wednesday. Microsoft ( MSFT ) edged down 0.1% after it issued an alert about "active attacks" on its server software over the weekend.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil decreased 0.2% to $67.20 a barrel before the open. The EU adopted a new set of sanctions against Russia, including reducing the price cap for the country's crude oil to $47.6 per barrel from $60, the Council of the EU announced Friday.

Gold inclined 0.5% to $3,374 per troy ounce, while bitcoin rose 0.2% to $118,700.