US EQUITY OPEN: Indices extend lower after the open as FOMC and earnings from META/MSFT await

OPEN:US indices opened with losses, with the Nasdaq 100 the relative outperformer and only seeing marginal pressure after notable pressure and underperformance throughout the week so far. Sectors are mixed as earnings come thick and fast, with Energy and Communication Services sitting atop of the breakdown, and Industrials lagging. The former is buoyed by gains of c. USD 5/bbl in the crude complex, with the latest leg higher seen on Trump stating "we'll be hitting Iran hard" and strikes will take place in response to attacks on US targets in Jordan. For Industrials, Caterpillar (CAT) weakness is hitting the sector after a downgrade at Baird. After-hours attention turns to earnings from MSFT, META, QCOM, LRCX, and ARM, amongst others.The Dollar is mixed against G10 peers, as the Aussie clearly lags as pressured after softer-than-expected inflation data prompted Westpac to shift its RBA view to a prolonged hold (prev. view of an August hike). CAD ekes out gains as energy prices soar.Treasuries and precious metals are both lower, and weighed on by the aforementioned Trump remarks which added further inflation fears. Ahead, the clear risk event is the FOMC, and following Chair Warsh presser, whereby the central bank is anticipated to hold rates, with an outside tail risk of a 25bps hike.STOCK SPECIFICS: NXP Semiconductors (NXPI): Beat & raise failed to impress investors amid a broader semi sell-off & recent pullback. Seagate (STX): EPS & rev. topped w/ strong guidance. Skyworks Solutions (SWKS): Disappointing profit outlook & discontinuation of div. overshadowed a Q beat, healthy mobile demand & new buyback prog. Terdayne (TER): Top & bottom line beat w/ stellar next Q guidance. Ford (F): Strong results & raised FY FCF outlook. Bloom Energy (BE): Stellar Q metrics & lifted FY26 guidance. Vertiv (VRT): Top line light. VF Corp (VFC): Deeper loss per shr. than exp. Humana (HUM): FY26 adj. EPS view anticipates Y/Y decline due to Star ratings headwind for bonus year '26. GE HealthCare (GEHC): Q metrics surpassed Wall St. exp. as did the midpoint of FY profit view. GlobalFoundries (GFS) signs LOI w/ US DoC for a $300mln award to accelerate US silicon photonics leadership. Johnson Controls International (JCI): Strong results & next Q/FY profit outlook. Procter & Gamble (PG): Top line fell short. Garmin (GRMN): Stellar earnings report & guidance. Caterpillar (CAT) was downgraded at Baird to 'Neutral' from 'Outperform'.