5 things to know before the stock market opens Monday

Here are the most important news items that investors need to start their trading day:

Stock futures were mixed Monday morning, after major U.S. indexes started the second half of the year on a losing note. Two key inflation measures – the consumer price index due Wednesday and producer price index out Thursday – will help to shape Federal Reserve interest rate decisions ahead. The central bank’s policymaking panel meets later this month, after it decided against a hike in June following 10 straight increases. Investors will also watch the start of major second-quarter earnings reports later this week. Follow live market updates here.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen returned from a four-day trip to China confident that Washington and Beijing can better communicate amid a simmering economic conflict. She called her 10 hours of meetings with Chinese officials over two days “direct, substantive and productive.” Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng also called the talks “constructive,” while adding that Chinese officials “expressed concerns over the sanctions and restrictions imposed by the United States on China,” according to a government readout. Officials from the world’s two largest economies discussed recent restrictions both countries put on key exports, national security and climate change, among other issues.  

As one high-stakes Biden administration trip ends, another begins. The president met Monday morning with United Kingdom Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. The leaders have established a close relationship as the U.S. and U.K. take a major role in providing arms and financial aid to Ukraine in its defense against Russia’s invasion. Biden will also meet with King Charles III for the first time since the monarch’s coronation, and the two will hold an event on combatting climate change. Biden will then take off for the NATO Summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, where he will likely have to answer for his controversial decision to provide cluster munitions to Ukraine.

Investors who missed earnings season will have to wait only a few more days for second-quarter results to take off in earnest. Bank titans JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo and Citigroup will give clues about the health of an industry still grappling with the causes and effects of three regional bank failures this year.   Pepsico earnings will offer a view into how consumers and companies are handling elevated inflation around the world. Delta’s results will give indications of whether travelers are still shelling out for flights at high prices.

More than 70 million people signed up for Meta’s Twitter competitor Threads within two days of its launch, CEO Mark Zuckerberg said Friday. The membership pool has likely only swelled more in recent days. Meta has a built-in advantage as it expands the network: users can sign up with their own handles from the company’s Instagram platform. Twitter sensed a threat early. Within a day of the Threads launch, the social platform accused Meta of stealing trade secrets.