5 things to know before markets open on Friday

Happy Friday. The US opened 60 more trade investigations last night as the Trump administration continues to seek alternatives to the now overturned presidential mandate. The new investigation focuses on forced labor trade practices.

Stock futures rose this morning after a negative session.

Here are five important things investors need to know to start their trading day.

Oil prices rose and stocks fell yesterday after Iran’s new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei said the Strait of Hormuz should be closed “to put pressure on the enemy.” Brent crude rose 9.22% to close above $100 a barrel, the first time it has closed at that level since 2022.

Here’s what you need to know:

U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright told CNBC on Thursday that the U.S. Navy is “not ready” to escort oil tankers through the strait, adding: “It will happen relatively soon, but it’s not happening now.” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent later said in an interview with Sky News that the US Navy would escort the ship “to the extent militarily possible…perhaps with the United Nations.” Bessent also said on XPost last night that the US would temporarily allow countries to buy Russian crude already at sea. U.S. Central Command announced this morning that a refueling plane crashed in western Iraq yesterday, killing four crew members. It said the incident was not caused by hostile or friendly fire. Rising oil stocks continued to weigh on stock prices on Thursday. of Dow Jones Industrial Average It fell more than 700 points and fell below 47,000 points for the first time this year. All three major indexes are expected to end this week in the red. Follow live market updates here.

Hopes for a rate cut this year have waned as the Iran war raises concerns about energy prices and inflation.

Before the dispute erupted about two weeks ago, traders had predicted that the Federal Reserve would cut interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point in June and September, and that a third rate cut could occur before the end of the year. Federal funds futures traders currently expect only one rate cut in December, according to CME Group’s FedWatch tool. The Fed is scheduled to make its next interest rate decision on March 18, but traders are almost certain the central bank will keep rates unchanged.

Market watchers will get fresh information on inflation when January’s Personal Consumption Expenditure Price Index is released at 8:30 a.m. ET. Economists expect the report, the Fed’s preferred measure of inflation, to show headline PCE rose 0.3% month over month, or 2.9% annually.

shares of adobe The company fell more than 7% in pre-market trading after the software company announced yesterday that CEO Shantanu Narayan would step down once a successor is named.

The announcement came alongside Adobe’s first-quarter results, in which the company beat analysts’ expectations for revenue and bottom line. The company reported a 12% increase in revenue compared to a year ago and issued a better-than-expected outlook for the current quarter.

Narayen wasn’t the only technology executive to announce a career update yesterday. Rajesh Jha, Microsoft’s top Office executive, will retire this summer after 35 years with the company.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman met with several members of Congress on Capitol Hill yesterday, two weeks after the artificial intelligence company was awarded a contract with the Department of Defense.

Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) told CNBC’s Emily Wilkins that he asked Altman “serious questions” about Open AI, the Pentagon contract and AI’s role in war. “We’ve got to put guardrails in place and we’ve got to be constantly thinking about the Constitution and making sure we’re adhering to it,” Kelly said.

Elsewhere on The Hill, the Senate on Thursday passed the largest housing affordability bill in 30 years. But the bill faces an uphill battle in the House. Republican leaders have indicated they do not intend to take up the Senate-passed bill in the House.

The New York Yankees remain the most valuable team in baseball, according to CNBC’s 2026 Official MLB Team Ratings. At $9 billion, the franchise is the 10th sports franchise and the only MLB franchise to have such a high valuation.

However, their second straight World Series win and superstar two-way player Shohei Ohtani have helped them close the gap on the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Dodgers brought in $950 million in revenue last season, nearly $200 million more than the Yankees, sources told CNBC. The team is currently valued at $8 billion.

Here’s what you may have missed this week.

— CNBC’s Emma Graham, Soda Baimiya, Holly Ellyat, Spencer Kimball, Dan Mangan, Lim Hui Jie, Chloe Taylor, Sean Conlon, Pia Shin, Jeff Cox, Jordan Nove, Ashley Caputo, Emily Wilkins and Michael Ozanian contributed to this report. Melody Warner edited this version.