5 things to know before the stock market opens Tuesday, August 9

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

U.S. equities markets were poised for a subdued open Tuesday morning, a day after the Dow squeaked out a win and the Nasdaq and S&P 500 slipped slightly. Investors are anticipating Wednesday’s consumer price index report, as economists expect the pace of inflation to ease a bit, but they are looking forward to more earnings reports. While there have been some big flops – Novovax shares tanked after it dramatically cut its guidance Monday – most companies’ earnings have been positive. About three-fourths of the 400-plus companies that have reported so far this season beat expectations, according to FactSet. Spirit reported Tuesday morning, Coinbase is set to announce after the bell and Disney is set to report Wednesday.

The Federal Reserve, which has been battling four-decade high inflation with steep rate hikes, actually received some good news Monday. Respondents to the New York Fed’s monthly Survey of Consumer Expectations said they believe inflation will persist at a pace of about 6.2% for the next year, and at 3.2% over the next three years. Those numbers are still high, but they have moderated as the price of gasoline and mortgage rates slipped from recent peaks. The Fed is expected to follow through with more rate rises following back-to-back three-quarter point increases this summer.

Inflation is still an issue, though. Allbirds, which specializes in “eco-friendly” footwear, said Monday that it would slow down its pace of hiring and cut costs as it contends with a decline in demand spurred by surging prices and other economic factors. The retailer also reduced its forecast for the year. The stock fell more than 10% during off-hours trading. Allbirds went public in November of last year, with a valuation of about $4 billion. Its market cap as of the closing bell Monday was $842 million.

Last week, Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav touted his company’s upcoming slate of DC Comics superhero movies, including a new “Shazam” movie, Dwayne Johnson’s “Black Adam” and “The Flash.” (Just not the nearly complete “Batgirl,” which the studio nixed for a tax break.) “We’re very excited about them. We’ve seen them. We think they’re terrific,” Zaslav said on the company’s earnings call. But what he didn’t mention was all the trouble “Flash” star Ezra Miller is in. On Monday, news broke that Miller was charged with felony burglary in Vermont. This follows a string of claims of misconduct against Miller, who has been accused of injuring a woman and grooming children. So far, Warner Bros. has been quiet about Miller’s ongoing legal trouble, but the controversy will likely only grow before the big-budget “Flash” is released next year.

FBI agents spent several hours Monday at former President Donald Trump’s South Florida home and private club. Various outlets reported that the search was at least related to a Justice Department investigation into how and why 15 boxes of White House records — which included documents marked as classified — ended up at Mar-a-Lago instead of the National Archives. A lawyer for Trump told NBC News that agents seized documents. Trump himself was in New York on Monday. The search and seizure comes as Trump faces escalating legal problems stemming from a House committee’s probe of the Jan. 6 pro-Trump insurrection at the Capitol and a Georgia investigation into election interference. The political impact from the raid and its aftermath is shaping up to be seismic, as Trump weighs another run for the White House and Republicans attempt to win Congress this fall.

– CNBC’s Sarah Min, Jeff Cox, Lauren Thomas, Sarah Whitten, Kevin Breuninger and Dan Mangan contributed to this report.

— Sign up now for the CNBC Investing Club to follow Jim Cramer’s every stock move. Follow the broader market action like a pro on CNBC Pro.