Futures Pointing To Initial Rebound On Wall Street

The major U.S. index futures are currently pointing to a higher open on Monday, with stocks likely to move back to the upside following the pullback seen over the two previous sessions.

Bargain hunting may contribute to initial strength on Wall Street, as traders look to pick up stocks at relatively reduced levels.

After plunging last Thursday, the tech-heavy Nasdaq saw further downside last Friday, ending the day at its lowest closing level since early August. The S&P 500 also fell to a one-month closing low.

Early buying interest may also be generated in reaction to a significant pullback by the price of crude oil, with U.S. crude oil futures tumbling by more than 2 percent.

The pullback by crude oil prices comes as U.S. Central Command claimed U.S. forces have reached the milestone of assisting Gulf partners in exporting more than 1.5 billion barrels of crude oil since summer.

CENTCOM said more than 3,000 commercial vessels have successfully transited the Strait of Hormuz with support from U.S. forces over the last six months.

“The continuing recovery in exports from the Middle East is helping to douse some of the concern about the potential for renewed US-Israeli strikes on Iran,” said AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould.

However, overall trading activity may be somewhat subdued ahead of several key events later this week, including the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy decision.

The Fed is scheduled to announce its latest monetary policy decision on Wednesday, with the central bank widely expected to leave rates unchanged.

With a quarter point rate hike still widely expected at the Fed’s December meeting, traders are likely to keep a close eye on the accompanying statement.

Earnings news is also likely to remain in the spotlight next week, with Amazon (AMZN), Microsoft (MSFT) and Google parent Alphabet (GOOGL) among the companies due to report their quarterly results.

Following the sell-off seen during Thursday’s session, stocks saw further downside over the course of the trading day on Friday. The major averages all ended the day in negative territory, with the Dow showing a particularly steep drop.

The Dow slumped 652.82 points or 1.2 percent to 52,215.16, pulling back off the one-month closing high set in the previous session.

The S&P 500 also fell 39.75 or 0.5 percent to a one-month closing low of 7,623.68, while the Nasdaq slipped 53.52 points or 0.2 percent to 25,955.34, ending the day at its lowest closing level since early August.

Despite the steep drop on the day, the Dow rose by 0.4 percent for the week, although the S&P 500 and Nasdaq posted weekly losses of 0.5 percent and 0.7 percent, respectively.

Lingering concerns about the artificial intelligence trade contributed to the weakness on Wall Street along with a continued increase in the price of crude oil.

U.S. crude oil futures spiked by nearly 4 percent and jumped back well above $100 a barrel, while international benchmark Brent crude oil futures reached a six-month high.

Concerns about supply disruptions in the Middle East continued to drive the price of crude oil higher amid continued attacks by the Iran-aligned Houthi militia of Yemen against Saudi Arabia.

Reports suggesting that the U.S. and Israeli are planning to renew military operations against Iran after the midterm elections also contributed to the spike in crude oil prices.

However, traders seemed reluctant to make more significant moves ahead of several key events this week, including the Federal Reserve’s latest monetary policy meeting.

Airline stocks moved sharply lower amid the spike in crude oil prices, with the NYSE Arca Airline Index tumbling by 2.6 percent.

A steep drop by the price of gold also contributed to considerable weakness among gold stocks, as reflected by the 2.2 percent slump by the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index.

Pharmaceutical and retail stocks also notable weakness on the day, while oil service stocks surged along with the price of crude oil, resulting in a 5.5 percent spike by the Philadelphia Oil Service Index.

Commodity, Currency Markets

Crude oil futures are tumbling $2.19 to $101.08 a barrel after soaring $3.80 to $103.27 a barrel last Friday. Meanwhile, after slumping $52.50 to $4,007.90 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are climbing $28.30 to $4,036.20 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 157.31 yen versus the 156.86 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Friday. Against the euro, the dollar is trading at $1.1191 compared to last Friday’s $1.1202.

Asia

Asian stocks ended mixed on Monday due to renewed tensions in the Middle East and ahead of earnings from major U.S. technology companies due this week.

Investors also looked forward to a slew of central bank meetings, including the U.S. Federal Reserve’s policy meeting set for Tuesday and Wednesday, for clues on whether policymakers remain inclined to raise rates further this year.

Gold was up half a percent at $4,015 an ounce in Asian trading, hovering close to a three-month low after falling 4 percent last week, marking its biggest weekly decline since June. A pullback in Treasury yields weighed on the dollar index as investors braced for the Fed decision.

Brent crude futures fell nearly 2 percent below $115 a barrel after reports of diplomatic efforts to reduce regional tensions in West Asia.

A Qatari delegation arrived in Tehran on Sunday as part of renewed diplomatic efforts to de-escalate reginal tensions in coordination with the United States.

Saudi Arabia partially resumed operations at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh on Sunday, even as Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis vowed to keep striking the facility, calling it a “military target.”

China’s Shanghai Composite Index edged up 0.2 percent to 3,697.52, reversing early losses on concerns over weakening growth and consumption.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 0.5 percent to 23,211.81 as investors weighed easing oil prices against concerns over technology valuations.

The Taiwanese stock market was closed on account of Taiwan Restoration Day, while the New Zealand stock exchange was closed for Labor Day.

Japanese markets fell for a third consecutive session as chip-related stocks fell amid concerns over AI infrastructure financing. The Nikkei 225 Index dropped 0.8 percent to 62,189.65, while the broader Topix Index settled 0.2 percent higher at 3,972.98.

Among the prominent decliners, Sumco tumbled 3.5 percent and Screen Holdings slumped 4.3 percent. Higher oil prices lifted energy stocks, with Inpex surging 4.9 percent and JGC Holdings rallying 2.7 percent.

Seoul stocks fell sharply amid mounting concerns about the AI boom after investment bank Goldman Sachs cut its 12-month target for the benchmark Kospi Index from 12,000 to 9,000, reflecting more conservative assumptions about how the market assesses companies’ fundamentals.

The Kospi Index tumbled 1.5 percent to 5,469.47 ahead of earnings announcements from Korea’s major chipmakers later this week, with SK Hynix set to report its third quarter results on Wednesday, followed by Samsung Electronics on Thursday.

Australian markets ended slightly higher after falling earlier in the session. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index inched up 0.2 percent to 8,809.90, led by miners ahead of the release of September 2026 quarter and monthly CPI inflation data due on Wednesday. The broader All Ordinaries Index closed 0.2 percent higher at 8,926.60.

Europe

European stocks are mostly higher on Monday as easing oil prices provide some relief and investors look forward to a slew of central bank meetings as well key tech earnings for directional cues.

The U.S. Federal Reserve, the European Central Bank and the Bank of Japan will announce their rate decisions in a dense three-day stretch from October 28 to 30.

Oil prices fell nearly 2 percent after Saudi Arabia partially resumed operations at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh and a Qatari delegation arrived in Tehran as part of renewed diplomatic efforts to de-escalate reginal tensions in coordination with the United States.

In earnings news, prominent companies, including Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon, Intel and SanDisk are due to report their earnings this week amid prevailing uncertainty about returns on AI-related investments.

While the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.5 percent, the French CAC 40 Index and the German DAX Index are both up by 0.9 percent.
In corporate news, French conglomerate Bollore has moved notably higher after reporting solid group revenue results for the third quarter and nine-months of 2026.

Man Group shares have also jumped. The U.K. investment management company announced an expanded strategic partnership with Japan-based Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance.

Meanwhile, Swiss specialty chemicals company Sika has fallen after it agreed to acquire Dubai-based waterproofing membrane manufacturer Duproof.

U.S. Economic News

The Treasury Department is scheduled to announce the results of this month’s auction of $69 billion worth of two-year notes at 1 pm ET.