Morning Preview: August 18, 2026

Early Look

Tuesday, August 18, 2026

U.S. stock futures, particularly technology stocks (QQQ), retreated overnight as long-term borrowing costs from the United States to Japan and Germany rose to their highest levels in decades as Brent oil prices rose back above $90 a barrel, fanning inflation worries as U.S.-Iran peace hopes faded. Oil prices rose for a third session Monday as prospects receded for a deal to end the Middle East war, with Iran saying it would adopt a more offensive stance and the U.S. ruling out extending a ceasefire deal, heightening worries about energy supply. The 30-year yield climbs above 5.32% (new 19 year highs) while the benchmark 10-year tops 4.73% adding to fears. Wall Street is coming off modest losses as energy (XLE) was a leader Monday as WTI and Brent settled up 2.6% and 2.7%, respectively, and both chips (SOX) and metals outperformed…but consumer staples, REITs, large cap tech, travel and leisure were among the biggest losers. Today, housing data is on tap, with housing starts, building permits and pending home sales on the docket as well as Industrial production and import/export prices. In Asian markets, The Nikkei Index tumbled -1,759 points or 2.54% to settle at 67,460, the Shanghai Index rose 7 points to 3,990, and the Hang Seng Index advanced 17 points to 25,471. In Europe, the German DAX is down -87 points to 26,251, while the FTSE 100 is up a few points to 10,722.

• The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell -272.51 points, or 0.51%, to 53,460.02
• The Nasdaq Composite dropped -84.25 points, or 0.32%, to 26,644.91
• The Russell 2000 Index declined -10.88 points, or 0.35% to 3,057.53

• 8:30 AM ET                  Housing Starts M/M for July…est. 1.35M
• 8:30 AM ET                  Building Permits M/M for July…est. 1.37M
• 8:30 AM ET                  Import Prices M/M for July…est. +0.1%
• 8:30 AM ET                  Export Prices M/M for July…est. +0.2%
• 8:55 AM ET                  Johnson/Redbook Weekly Sales
• 9:15 AM ET                  Industrial Production M/M for July…est. +0.3%
• 9:15 AM ET                  Capacity Utilization for July…est. 76.3%
• 10:00 AM ET                Pending Home Sales M/M for July…est. +0.3%
• 4:30 PM ET API Weekly Inventory Data

• Earnings After the Close: AUNA JKHY KEYS LZB MRCY SQM TOL ZTO

• Piper California Medtech & Diagnostics Bus Tour, 8/18-8/20
• Rosenblatt 6th Annual Age of AI Tech Virtual Summit, 8/17-8/18
• Seaport Global 15th Annual Summer Investor Virtual Conference, 8/18-8/19

• Britain’s labor market cooled further in Q2, marked by slowing earnings growth in the private sector. Private sector regular earnings rose by 2.8% in annual terms during the three months to June, marking the weakest growth since the three months to October 2020.
• U.S. June net overall capital flow +$133.5B vs +$131.5B in May (vs. prior +$132.2B); U.S. June net long-term flow (ex-swaps/other) +$172.7B vs +$231.2B in May; U.S. June net official capital flow +$48.4B vs (-$39.9B in May); Japan’s U.S. Treasury holdings $1.117 trln in June vs $1.143 trln in May and China holdings $633B in June vs $659B in May.

• Amer Sports (AS) Q2 revenue rose 32% y/y to $1.63B topping est. $1.54B, while adjusted EPS for Q2 rose $0.18; raises full-year 2026 revenue growth guidance to about 24% and now sees 2026 gross margin at 60.5–61.0% and operating margin at 14.2–14.5%; said strong Q2 revenue growth was driven by Technical Apparel, Outdoor Performance, and Ball & Racquet (Wilson Tennis 360).
• Costco (COST) plans to soon rollout Costco-branded Medicare plans, working with SCAN Group, Anna the Wall Street Journal reports. The two companies would start selling their jointly named Medicare Advantage in two states and a Medicare supplement in a third state.

• Flexsteel Industries (FLXS) says consumer demand for furniture remains pressured by macroeconomic uncertainty related to ongoing conflict in Middle East; Q4 adj EPS $1.33 vs est $1.09 on revs $115.365Mm vs est $109.66Mm, gr mgn 30%; guides Q1 revs $111-115Mm vs est $106.8Mm.
• Kaiser Aluminum (KALU) announced a leadership transition, with the Board of Directors appointing Fred Stephan as Chief Executive Officer and President, effective November 1, 2026, as part of its long-term succession planning process.
• Targa Resources (TRGP) said it signed new 20-year fee-based agreements with Exxon Mobil (XOM) to provide integrated natural-gas gathering, processing, and downstream services in the Permian Basin and plans to build three new processing plants in the region.

• Aon Plc (AON) CFO Edmund Reese will transition from his role as EVP and CFO effective immediately, to pursue opportunities outside the firm. Aon appointed Nadin Virani as Interim CFO, effective immediately, and Reese will serve as senior advisor to Aon President and CEO Greg Case, through August 16, 2027
• XP Inc. (XP) Q2 adjusted net profit R$1.38B vs. est. R$1.37B; gross revenue R$5.06B, +8% YoY; total client assets R$2.2T; 11.79Mm Class A Treasury shares to be cancelled.

• Duos Technology Group (DUOT) Q2 EPS $1.35 vs est $0.66; revenue $6.18Mm vs est $4.9Mm, +30% YoY; operating Income $49k; FY revenue guidance over $50Mm vs est $55.5Mm; 25 MW deployed target reaffirmed.
• Fabrinet (FN) Q4 adj EPS $4.10 vs. est. $3.82; Q4 revs rose 45% y/y to a record $1.316B vs. est. $1.275B and adj net income $149.1M vs. est. $138.7M; guides Q1 revs $1.375-$1.42B vs. est. $1.321B and EPS $4.10-$4.25 vs. est. $3.98.
• Meta (META) will face off against attorneys general from several states in an Oakland, Calif., courtroom Tuesday as part of a major lawsuit alleging that the company violated child safety and consumer protection laws and harmed children’s mental health.
• Xiaomi (XIACY) said it expects memory price increase to slow down in 2H