Bargain Hunting May Contribute To Initial Rebound On Wall Street

The major U.S. index futures are currently pointing to a higher open on Friday, with stocks likely to regain ground after moving sharply lower over the past few sessions.

Traders may look to pick up stocks at reduced levels following the recent tech-led weakness, which dragged the Nasdaq down to its lowest closing level in over two months.

Activity may be somewhat subdued, however, as the Labor Department’s closely watched monthly jobs report that was originally due to be released this morning has been delayed until next Wednesday.

Lingering concerns about AI spending may also limit the upside for the markets along with a slump by shares of Amazon (AMZN).

Amazon is plunging by 8.5 percent in pre-market trading after the online retail giant reported slightly weaker than expected fourth quarter earnings and forecast 2026 capital spending well above analyst estimates.

“All the hyperscalers are competing to win the AI race, for which the prize could be significant,” said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell. “However, investors are being asked to countenance enormous amounts of cash going out the door in service of this goal.”

He added, “With the exact direction and trajectory of artificial intelligence still uncertain there is understandable concern that this money could be wasted.”

Following the mixed performance seen during Wednesday’s session, the major U.S. stock indexes all moved sharply lower during trading on Thursday. The tech-heavy Nasdaq led the way lower, tumbling to its lowest closing level in over two months.

The major averages ended the day off their worst levels of the session but still firmly negative. The Nasdaq plunged 363.99 points or 1.6 percent to 22,540.59, the S&P 500 tumbled 84.32 points or 1.2 percent to 6,798.40 and the Dow slumped 592.58 points or 1.2 percent to 48,908.72.

Weakness among tech stocks continued to weigh on Wall Street amid a significant decrease by shares of Qualcomm (QCOM).

Qualcomm plummeted by 8.5 percent after the chipmaker reported fiscal first quarter earnings that exceeded estimates but provided disappointing guidance for the current quarter.

Google parent Alphabet (GOOGL) ended the day well off its lows but still dipped by 0.5 percent after the company reported better than expected fourth quarter results but forecast a sharp increase in capital spending in 2026.

Tech stocks have moved sharply lower over the past few sessions amid concerns about valuations and the impact of artificial intelligence.

In U.S. economic news, a report released by the Labor Department showed first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits rose by much more than expected in the week ended January 31st.

The Labor Department said initial jobless claims climbed to 231,000, an increase of 22,000 from the previous week’s unrevised level of 209,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to inch up to 212,000.

With the bigger than expected increase, jobless claims reached their highest level since hitting 237,000 in the week ended December 6th.

The Labor Department also release a separate report showing job openings in the U.S. unexpectedly decreased to their lowest level in over five years in the month of December.

Gold stocks moved sharply lower along with the price of the precious metal, resulting in a 6.3 percent nosedive by the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index.

Software and computer hardware stocks also saw substantial weakness, dragging the Dow Jones U.S. Software Index and the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index by 5.1 percent and 4.2 percent, respectively.

A steep drop by the price of crude oil also weighed on oil service stocks, as reflected by the 3.1 percent plunge by the Philadelphia Oil Service Index.

Financial, retail and pharmaceutical stocks also saw considerable weakness, moving lower along with most of the major sectors.

Commodity, Currency Markets

Crude oil futures are slipping $0.14 to $63.15 a barrel after tumbling $1.85 to $63.29 a barrel on Thursday. Meanwhile, after sliding $61.30 to $4,889.50 ounce in the previous session, gold futures are jumping $57.70 to $4,947.20 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 157.01 yen versus the 157.03 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Thursday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.1804 compared to yesterday’s $1.1775.

Asia

Negative sentiment prevailed in Asian stock markets on Friday, dragged down by concerns over the tech sector. Sentiment was pressured by the sell offs on Wall Street triggered by mounting worries about the impact of AI on software companies.

Heightened volatility observed in metals and cryptocurrency markets further dampened risk appetite in Asian markets. Equity markets in New Zealand remained closed for a holiday.

Concerns over AI that triggered losses on Wall Street spilled over into mainland China. China’s Shanghai Composite Index shed 0.3 percent from the previous close of 4,075.92 to finish trading at 4,065.58. The day’s trading ranged between 4,095.03 and 4,029.97.

The Shenzhen Component Index closed at 13,906.73, falling 0.3 percent from the previous close of 13,952.71.

The Hang Seng Index of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange slumped 1.2 percent from the previous close to finish trading at 26,559.95. The day’s trading range was between a high of 26,710.34 and a low of 26,295.03.

The Japanese benchmark Nikkei 225 Index climbed 0.8 percent to close trading at 54,253.68 as investors focused on this weekend’s national election. The day’s trading ranged between 52,959 and 54,329 amidst hawkish comments from the Bank of Japan’s Kazuyuki Masu.

Ajinomoto Co. surged 13 percent followed by Mitsubishi Motors that rallied close to 10 percent. Kikkoman Corp, lost 7.5 percent followed by Konica Minolta that saw prices decrease more than 6 percent.

The Korean Stock Exchange’s Kospi Index tumbled 1.4 percent from the previous close of 5,163.57 to close trading at 5,089.14. The day’s trading range was between 4,899.30 and 5,120.77.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index closed trading at 8,708.80, plunging 2 percent from the previous close of 8,889.20. The day’s trading ranged between 8,683.70 and 8,889.20 amidst declines in the technology sector.

Web Travel Group plunged almost 30 percent followed by Deep Yellow that lost close to 12 percent.

Europe

After ending the previous session mostly lower, European stocks have moved back to the upside during trading on Friday.

While the German DAX Index is up by 0.5 percent, the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.2 percent and the French CAC 40 Index is up by 0.1 percent.

Data from Destatis showed German industrial production slumped 1.9 percent month-on-month in December, reversing a 0.2 percent rise in November. Output was forecast to dip 0.2 percent.

On a yearly basis, industrial production dropped 0.6 percent in contrast to the 0.5 percent increase in November.

Data from the French customs office showed France’s foreign trade deficit increased in December as imports grew faster than exports.

The trade deficit rose to 4.8 billion euros in December from 4.0 billion euros in the previous month. The expected shortfall was 4.1 billion euros.

Among individual stocks, Vinci has surged after reporting stronger-than-expected results for the full-year. Vinci reported full-year 2025 net income attributable to owners of the parent of 4.90 billion euros or 8.65 euros per share, up from 4.86 billion euros or 8.43 euros per share last year.

Meanwhile, Metlen Energy & Metals has tumbled after the company said that it expects its 2025 EBITDA to come approximately 25% lower than previously targeted, despite robust performance in its core business segments.

U.S. Economic News

The University of Michigan is scheduled to release its preliminary reading on consumer sentiment in the month of February at 10 am ET. The consumer sentiment index is expected to dip to 55.5 in February after jumping to 56.4 in January.

At 12 pm ET, Federal Reserve Vice Chair Philip Jefferson is due to speak on the economic outlook and supply-side inflation dynamics before the Brookings Institution.

The Federal Reserve is scheduled to release its report on consumer credit in the month of December at 3 pm ET. Consumer credit is expected to increase by $8.4 billion.