Stock futures are little changed as investors await inflation data with end of second quarter looming: Live updates

Stock futures are near flat Thursday night as traders await closely followed inflation data. They are also counting down to the end of what has been a strong first half of the year.

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures slipped 47 points, or 0.1%. S&P 500 futures ticked up 0.1%, while Nasdaq 100 futures added 0.2%.

In after-hours action, Nike shares slipped more than 10% after the athletic retailer cut its full-year guidance. Foot Locker shares declined nearly 5% in sympathy.

Those moves follow a muted day on Wall Street as investors brace for the release of May's core personal consumption expenditures price index, known as the PCE, Friday morning. The Dow and S&P 500 each inched higher by around 0.1%, while the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.3%.

Considered to be the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation gauge, the headline PCE reading is expected to be flat from April and higher by 2.6% compared to a year ago. Excluding volatile food and energy prices, the core PCE is forecast to come in 0.1% higher on the month and 2.6% on an annualized basis.

Inflation stats have been considered paramount by markets participants as they try to guess when the Fed will begin cutting interest rates. Traders will also monitor releases on spending, personal income and consumer sentiment due throughout the morning.

Those are some of the final potential market catalysts for the first six months of 2024, which officially concludes with Friday's closing bell. It is a day full of noteworthy data, as it marks the end of the trading week, month, quarter and half year.

The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite has led the way over the first half, climbing around 19% as artificial intelligence craze captured investor excitement. The broad S&P 500 has jumped