U.S. Stocks May Move Back To The Upside In Early Trading

The major U.S. index futures are currently pointing to a higher open on Friday, with stocks likely to move back to the upside after coming under pressure over the course of the previous session.

Technology stocks may help lead an early rebound on Wall Street following yesterday’s sell-off, as reflected by the 0.7 percent advance by the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 futures.

Reports OpenAI’s annualized revenue came in below estimates weighed on the sector on Thursday, although continued optimism about the AI trade may lead to a recovery.

A pullback by the price of crude oil may also contribute to early strength, although a rebound by treasury yields may keep buying interest somewhat subdued.

Traders may also be reluctant to make significant moves ahead of next week’s release of key inflation data along with the start of earnings season.

The Labor Department is scheduled to release reports on consumer and producer inflation next week, while financial giants Citigroup (C), JPMorgan Chase (JPM), Wells Fargo (WFC) and Bank of America (BAC) are among the companies due to report their quarterly results.

“Strong earnings combined with moderating inflation would offer the most supportive backdrop for equities,” said Daniela Hathorn, Senior Market Analyst at Capital.com.

She added, “Conversely, persistent price pressures alongside disappointing corporate guidance could expose the vulnerability of a market increasingly dependent on a relatively small group of technology companies to sustain its rally.”

Stocks moved mostly lower during trading on Thursday, adding to the modest losses posted in the previous session. The tech-heavy Nasdaq showed a notable move to the downside, pulling back further off the record closing high set on Tuesday.

The Nasdaq ended the day off its lows of the session but still slumped 345.35 points or 1.3 percent to 27,193.34. The S&P 500 also fell 36.41 points or 0.5 percent to 7,765.36, although the narrower Dow bucked the downtrend and inched up 51.77 points or 0.1 percent to 51,231.64.

Early weakness on Wall Street came amid a renewed spike in crude oil prices due to concerns about a re-escalation of the conflict in the Middle East.

U.S. crude oil futures soared early in the day after a report from NBC News said President Donald Trump and his national security team have discussed possibly resuming large-scale U.S. military operations in Iran in the coming weeks.

Citing a U.S. official and another person with knowledge of the discussions, NBC News said the options included launching strikes before the midterm elections next month.

Crude oil prices gave back some ground after Trump denied the U.S. would be attacking Iran at any time prior to the elections, triggering a brief recovery attempt on Wall Street.

However, prices remained sharply higher due to ongoing attacks on tankers in the Middle East and concerns about hurricane-related production disruption in the Gulf of Mexico.

Selling pressure picked back after a report from the Financial Times said OpenAI’s annualized revenue is about $20 billion less than the company previously signaled.

The report, which cited financial documents shared with investors, contributed to particular weakness among technology stocks.

Semiconductor stocks moved sharply lower over the course of the session, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index plunging by 3.4 percent.

Substantial weakness also emerged among computer hardware stocks, as reflected by the 2.5 percent slump by the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index.

Networking and biotechnology stocks also showed significant moves to the downside, while oil producer stocks spiked along with the price of crude oil.

Commodity, Currency Markets

Crude oil futures are falling $0.56 to $90.93 a barrel after spiking $3.21 to $91.49 a barrel on Thursday. Meanwhile, after rising $16.30 to $4,157 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are jumping $48.30 to $4,205.30 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 158.22 yen versus the 157.86 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Thursday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.1197 compared to yesterday’s $1.1209.

Asia

Asian stocks ended mostly higher in thin trading on Friday, with markets in South Korea and Taiwan closed for holidays.

While technology stocks came under selling pressure amid renewed concerns over the artificial intelligence (AI) boom and elevated borrowing costs, a retreat in oil prices and U.S. Treasury yields helped spur buying at lower levels.

Gold jumped nearly 1.5 percent toward $4,200 an ounce and the U.S. dollar took a breather as U.S. Treasury yields finally halted their relentless upward trajectory. The 10-year Treasury yield dropped to 5.22 percent after a 30-year debt auction met with solid demand.

Brent crude prices dropped 1 percent to trade above $103 a barrel, paring gains from the previous session as U.S. President Donald Trump ruled out attacking Iran before the U.S. midterm elections on November 3 and claimed record volumes of crude were currently passing through the Strait of Hormuz.

Trump also claimed that the two countries were holding “productive” discussions to end the six-month-old war. However, subsequent reports indicated that the U.S. had already prepared plans for three days of targeted strikes against Iranian energy infrastructure, drone and missile stockpiles.

China’s Shanghai Composite Index finished marginally higher at 3,813.79 after slipping at the open amid geopolitical tensions and renewed fears of potential U.S. trade curbs on next-generation optical transceivers for data centers.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng jumped 1.8 percent to close at 24,211.35, snapping a two-session losing streak on improving forward earnings expectations for tech stocks.

Japanese markets recovered from an early slide to end on a flat note. The Nikkei 225 Index finished marginally lower at 69,030.92, while the broader Topix Index settled 0.3 percent higher at 4,104.81.

Heavyweight SoftBank Group tumbled 3.9 percent and Renesas Electronics lost 4 percent after OpenAI’s underwhelming revenue report and news that Apple has reduced component orders for iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max by 15 percent due to soft demand.

The yen weakened slightly against the dollar after data showed Japan’s household spending fell for a ninth month despite improving wages.

Australian markets ended notably higher, led by banks and gold stocks. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index climbed 0.6 percent to 8,716.60, while the broader All Ordinaries Index closed 0.6 percent higher at 8,877.70.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand’s benchmark S&P/NZX-50 Index rose 0.4 percent to 13,749.35, reversing morning losses and extending gains from the previous session.

Europe

European stocks have moved sharply higher on Friday, rebounding after two days of losses as oil prices slipped in the wake of comments from U.S. President Donald Trump that the U.S. will not attack Iran before the midterm elections next month and that discussions with Tehran remain productive.

Markets also found some relief from a pullback in French government bond yields, which had previously climbed to multi-decade highs.

Bank of France Governor Emmanuel Moulin said that Eurozone inflationary pressures are “100 percent” driven by energy shocks and that he doesn’t see second-round effects.

France must adopt a fiscally prudent budget for 2027 to reassure markets ahead of the upcoming 2027 presidential election, European Economic Commissioner Valdis Domrovskis said at a news conference on Thursday.

The German DAX Index is up by 1.3 percent, the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index is up by 1.2 percent and the French CAC 40 Index is up by 1 percent.

In corporate news, German sportscar maker Porsche has jumped despite announcing it had delivered 16 percent fewer vehicles globally in the first nine months of 2026.

Hexagon AB has also rallied. The Swedish industrial technology company said it has signed a deal to acquire Canada’s Rocscience for $535 million on a cash-free, debt-free basis.

Swiss specialty chemicals manufacturer Sika has also surged after it acquired British landscaping products maker Azpects Group.

Scandinavian insurance company Tryg has also moved sharply higher after its third-quarter pre-tax profit beat analysts’ expectations.

U.S. Economic News

The University of Michigan is scheduled to release its preliminary reading on consumer sentiment in the month of October at 10 am ET. The consumer sentiment index is expected to slip to 47.6 in October after falling to 48.1 in September.