Stock futures traded mixed Thursday morning as traders looked ahead to a key print on consumer price inflation, which will help elucidate the path forward for monetary policymakers during the recovery coming out of the pandemic.

Contracts on the S&P 500 rose slightly. A day earlier, the index came within 1 point of its recent all-time high but ultimately failed to set a new record. The Dow also rose, while Nasdaq futures moved lower in the early morning session.

Shares of GameStop (GME) slid 6% after the company said it was filing to be able to issue up to 5 million shares of its common stock, with the news overshadowing its stronger-than-expected first-quarter sales results. Other so-called "meme stocks" that recently became popular with traders on Reddit also gave back some gains after rallying on Wednesday, including Geo Group (GEO) and Aethlon Medical (AEMD). For the broader markets, investors are set to closely watch the Bureau of Labor Statistics' May consumer price index (CPI) Thursday morning, offering the latest snapshot on inflation at consumer prices. Consensus economists are looking for the headline index to surge 4.7% in May over last year, marking the biggest jump since 2008. And excluding volatile food and energy prices, the so-called "core" consumer price index is expected to increase by 3.5%, or by the most since 1993.

U.S. equity-index futures and government bonds fell after data showed that consumer prices rose more than forecast in May

Contracts on the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 and S&P 500 turned lower after the release. The 10-year Treasury yield climbed above 1.5%, pausing a rally that took the benchmark to the lowest since March on Wednesday. European stocks drifted lower before the next policy statement from the European Central Bank. Most Asian stocks rose Thursday as U.S.-China talks helped sentiment. The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) increased 0.6 percent in May on a seasonally adjusted basis after rising 0.8 percent in April, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Over the last 12 months, the all items index increased 5.0 percent before seasonal adjustment; this was the largest 12-month increase since a 5.4-percent increase for the period ending August 2008.

The index for used cars and trucks continued to rise sharply, increasing 7.3 percent in May. This increase accounted for about one-third of the seasonally adjusted all items increase. The food index increased 0.4 percent in May, the same increase as in April. The energy index was unchanged in May, with a decline in the gasoline index again offsetting increases in the electricity and natural gas indexes.

The index for all items less food and energy rose 0.7 percent in May after increasing 0.9 percent in April. Many of the same indexes continued to increase, including used cars and trucks, household furnishings and operations, new vehicles, airline fares, and apparel. The index for medical care fell slightly, one of the few major component indexes to decline in May.

The all items index rose 5.0 percent for the 12 months ending May; it has been trending up every month since January when the 12-month change was 1.4 percent. The index for all items less food and energy rose 3.8 percent over the last 12-months, the largest 12-month increase since the period ending June 1992. The energy index rose 28.5 percent over the last 12-months, and the food index increased 2.2 percent.