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Wall Street Braces for Bank Earnings Barrage as Oil Spike, CPI Loom

JPMorgan, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, Wells Fargo and Bank of America lead a five-bank blitz before the open; Brent tops $85 on Strait of Hormuz standoff

JUL 14, 2026··5 MIN READ·
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Wall Street Braces for Bank Earnings Barrage as Oil Spike, CPI Loom

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U.S. stock futures were mixed early Tuesday as investors braced for a wall of big-bank earnings, a hotter oil market and a June inflation print, all landing before and around the New York open. The share futures were mixed as the U.S. launched more strikes on Iran after President Donald Trump said Washington was reinstating a blockade on Iran in the strait.

The banking sector takes center stage. JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and Citigroup are all scheduled to report Q2 2026 earnings on Tuesday, before the market open. The simultaneous reporting creates a significant market event, especially as it coincides with the June CPI report release.

Oil is the second overhang. The price of WTI crude oil futures climbed 3.70% after soaring nearly 10% on Monday. Brent crude was up more than 4.50% a barrel. Oil prices are still below their wartime peak of nearly $120 a barrel, but uncertainty over the future stability of supplies has deepened as the U.S. and Iran each assert they control the Strait of Hormuz.

Premarket Snapshot — July 14, 2026

InstrumentLevel / MoveDriver
DJI futures (YM)-0.18%/52,671energy prices and bank earnings, as GS and JPM are index components
E-mini S&P 500 futures (ES)-0.04%/ 7,560.25Awaiting bank earnings, June CPI
Nasdaq 100 futures (NQ)+0.47%/29,615.25June CPI report holds the key
E-mini Russell 2,000 futures (RTY)-0.15%/2,966awaiting June CPI report as the index is heavily weighted with rate-sensitive small-caps
Brent crude+4.60%/$87.13US-Iran strikes, Strait of Hormuz risk
WTI crude+3.70%/$81.03Supply-route uncertainty
USD/JPY162.21(down 0.14%)Dollar softer vs. yen
10-Year U.S. Treasury note yield4.618% (up slightly)CPI report could decide the session's move
Gold futures+0.49%/$4,025.40June CPI, Warsh's testimony, oil prices
VIX+0.64%/17.27contained; but could change following CPI report

According to MarketFramework's Trade Validator tool, retail traders are moderately short on NQ futures. Long bets accounted for only 40% of the profitable traders, but longs accounted for 53% of unprofitable trades. So being long NQ has recently been the worse trade for retail, and being short has been the better trade. The "moderately short" positioning is a bias that has actually been paying off lately.

US Stocks in Focus

The five money-center banks headline the premarket tape. JPMorgan Chase reports second-quarter 2026 results, with Wall Street looking for $5.8 in earnings per share on $51.3 billion in revenue. That would top last year's $4.96 on $44.91 billion. Goldman Sachs Group reports second-quarter results, with analysts modeling $14.50 in earnings per share on $16.4 billion in revenue, compared with $10.91 on $14.58 billion in the prior-year quarter.

Citigroup expectations call for $2.71 in earnings per share on $23.73 billion in revenue; in the year-ago quarter, Citigroup posted $2.04 on $21.67 billion. Wells Fargo consensus calls for $1.70 in earnings per share on $21.85 billion in revenue, up from $1.54 on $20.82 billion a year earlier. Options desks are pricing sizable moves: Goldman Sachs (6.0%), Citigroup (5.5%), Wells Fargo (5.5%), Bank of America (4.5%), and JPMorgan (4.4%).

Positioning into the print is uneven. Citigroup has rallied in 2026, up 18.6% year-to-date and trading 21.9% above the 200-day moving average, with the shares sitting about 66% above the 52-week low of $85.48. Wells Fargo is the laggard, with shares down 6.5% year-to-date, while Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs and Citi have all gained over 20% as trading revenue and an improving IPO landscape have helped fuel their returns.

Beyond the banks, semiconductors remain the pain trade. On Monday, AI-related shares pulled indexes lower, and major AI chip stocks including Micron and Nvidia were hit as traders questioned whether AI demand can deliver on high profit hopes. Samsung Electronics is also on the radar after Reuters reported Samsung Electronics is in the early stages of exploring a potential offering of American Depositary receipts.

Macro Setpiece: CPI and Fed Path

The U.S. CPI printis set for release before Tuesday's market open, with expectations for a 0.1% drop that could signal softer inflation. That said, oil's renewed spike would push inflation higher, potentially leading the Federal Reserve and other central banks to raise interest rates; higher rates can keep a lid on inflation but also slow the economy and hurt prices for all kinds of investments.

Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh heads to Capitol Hill to deliver his semi-annual monetary policy address before the House Financial Services Committee. His will testify before the Senate Banking Committee on Wednesday. ING strategists said it is unclear whether the market will learn much from the two-day testimony, given Warsh had made it clear that he was not in favor of issuing forward guidance.

Analysts are forecasting that companies in the S&P 500 index will deliver overall growth of 23.6% from a year earlier, according to FactSet; if they are right, it would be the second straight quarter of growth better than 20%.

Asia Mixed, Europe Start Lower

Asian shares ended mixed as markets in Tokyo and Seoul rebounded from early losses. The markets in the region tracked geopolitical jitters between Iran and the U.S. and a spike in crude oil prices, with Japan's Nikkei 225 rising 0.74% and Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index up 0.72%, while the Taiwanese main stock market gauge fell 1.42% and China's Shanghai Composite index rallied 1.36%.

On the other, the major European stock market gauges, including the pan Europe Stoxx Europe 600, were all moderately lower, as traders paused ahead of the key risk events scheduled during the U.S. session.

Currencies and Rates

The U.S. dollar slipped to 162.19 Japanese, heading into the U.S. open. The U.S. dollar rally in 2026 is picking up as big pension funds around the world scale back currency hedges set up after last year's market swings, easing downside for the greenback, and U.S. assets have become more appealing with higher real rates and Warsh sticking to a hawkish view.

  • Bank earnings before the bell: JPMorgan, Citigroup, Wells Fargo, Goldman Sachs, Bank of America
  • June CPI report — expected to signal softer inflation
  • Warsh's Congressional testimony
  • Brent above $85; WTI above $80 on Strait of Hormuz risk
  • Chipmakers (Nvidia, Micron) under scrutiny as AI trade cools
  • Dollar softer vs. yen at 162.35
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