Stock futures pointed slightly higher to end a week that has seen major equities indexes sell off on concerns about AI spending and valuations of big tech firms, while the price of bitcoin continued to fall amid risk-off market sentiment.
Futures associated with the Nasdaq ticked 0.1% higher after the tech-heavy index sank 2.2% yesterday, while those affiliated with the S&P 500 rose 0.2% after the benchmark index ended down 1.6% yesterday. Those associated with the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 0.5% after the blue-chip index lost an early 700-point advance Thursday to close down nearly 400 points, or 0.8%.
Futures had been pointing mostly lower until New York Fed President John Williams signaled in prepared remarks for a conference in Chile that he could support an additional rate cat by the central bank “in the near term,” per reports.
Still, all three indexes were poised to close the week sharply lower, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq on pace for their biggest weekly losses since April.
Yesterday, stocks sold off, with Nvidia (NVDA) shares falling 3.2% even though the AI darling posted blockbuster third-quarter results and issued rosy guidance after the bell Wednesday. Shares of the world’s most valuable company were down less than 1% further in premarket trading.
Bitcoin continued its recent drop amid risk-off sentiment, falling to as low as about $80,600—its lowest level since April 11—from an overnight high of more than $88,000. The biggest cryptocurrency recently was trading around $82,800. Crypto-tied stocks Robinhood Markets (HOOD), Coinbase Global (COIN), Strategy (MSTR), and MARA Holdings (MARA) all were down after tumbling yesterday.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 4.05% from Thursday’s close of about 4.10%. The yield had slipped yesterday after a mixed U.S. jobs report did little to settle the Federal Reserve’s dilemma about whether to cut its key interest rate in December.
The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the performance of the dollar against a basket of foreign currencies, was little changed at 100.21. WTI crude futures, the U.S. oil benchmark, declined 1% to $58.40 per barrel. Gold futures ticked lower to $4,055 per ounce.
One bright spot Thursday was Walmart (WMT), whose shares jumped 6.5% to lead the S&P 500 and Dow after it reported better-than-expected third-quarter results and raised its fiscal 2026 outlook. Shares of the world’s largest retailer, which also announced it was switching its stock listing to the Nasdaq from the New York Stock Exchange, rose 0.6% before the bell.
Elsewhere in corporate news, shares of Gap (GAP), Intuit (INTU), and Ross Stores (ROST) were up a respective 5.5%, 3.5%, and 3%, after each reported earnings after the close Thursday. BJ’s Wholesale Club (BJ) shares rose 2% after it posted a profit beat and lifted its full-year adjusted earnings forecast before the bell.
