U.S. equity futures traded lower on Thursday as investors positioned cautiously ahead of this week’s key U.S. employment data and continued to monitor geopolitical developments. Oil prices steadied after recent declines, Samsung delivered an upbeat profit outlook for the fourth quarter, and Bitcoin retreated below the $91,000 threshold.
U.S. futures point lower
Early trading saw U.S. stock futures edge down, reflecting a risk-averse tone as markets awaited the upcoming nonfarm payrolls report and assessed broader global uncertainties.
At 03:05 ET (08:05 GMT), Dow futures were lower by 116 points, or 0.2%, S&P 500 futures slipped 13 points, or 0.2%, and Nasdaq 100 futures declined by 81 points, or 0.3%.
The prior session on Wall Street ended mixed. The Nasdaq Composite advanced, supported by gains in heavyweight technology stocks including Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) and Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG). In contrast, weakness in financial and energy shares weighed on the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
Markets also reacted to a series of policy statements from U.S. President Donald Trump. These included proposals to restrict institutional purchases of single-family homes, prohibit defence contractors from distributing dividends or conducting share buybacks, and increase U.S. defence spending by more than 50% to $1.5 trillion by 2027. It remains uncertain whether such measures could be enacted without congressional approval.
Analysts at Vital Knowledge noted that “The housing and defense dividend/buyback announcements weighed on investor sentiment as they were just the latest examples of the Trump 2.0 White House intervening in the economy in an unprecedented fashion.”
Oil prices stabilise
Crude prices edged higher but pared earlier gains after a Wall Street Journal report suggested the U.S. may be seeking long-term control over Venezuelan oil assets.
Oil markets found some support after two consecutive sessions of declines, amid concerns that global oversupply could worsen if Venezuelan production increases. Earlier in the week, Trump said Venezuela would hand over between 30 million and 50 million barrels of oil to Washington—worth up to $3 billion—shortly after U.S. forces captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
Additional support came from data showing a larger-than-expected weekly drop in U.S. crude inventories, while ongoing hostilities between Russia and Ukraine helped maintain a risk premium.
By 23:01 ET (04:01 GMT), Brent crude futures were up 0.2% at $60.07 per barrel, while West Texas Intermediate crude futures also rose 0.2% to $56.03 per barrel. Both benchmarks had fallen by more than 1% in each of the previous two sessions.
Samsung forecasts sharp Q4 earnings growth
Samsung Electronics (USOTC:SSNHZ) issued a stronger-than-anticipated profit forecast for the fourth quarter, benefiting from rising memory chip prices driven by artificial intelligence-related demand and supply constraints.
The company projected operating profit of 20 trillion won ($13.82 billion) for the October–December period, exceeding Reuters/LSEG expectations of 18 trillion won and more than tripling the 6.49 trillion won recorded a year earlier. Quarterly revenue is expected to reach approximately 93 trillion won, up from 75.79 trillion won in the same period last year.
The improved outlook was largely attributed to surging memory prices, as AI-focused firms absorbed a significant share of Samsung’s output, tightening supply.
Chinese chip shares rise on Nvidia report
Chinese semiconductor stocks moved higher following reports that Beijing has instructed some domestic technology companies to pause orders for Nvidia’s H200 artificial intelligence chips.
The move appears to be part of a broader review of access to the H200 and the conditions under which it may be supplied, reflecting efforts to encourage domestic chip development while managing reliance on foreign technology.
Several local AI and chipmakers gained in early trading. Hong Kong-listed Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp rose more than 0.3%, Hua Hong Semiconductor Ltd jumped over 2.6%, and Shanghai-listed Cambricon Technologies advanced by more than 3.3%.
Bitcoin retreats below $91,000
Bitcoin declined during European trading hours, extending a pullback from its early-year rally as risk appetite weakened amid heightened geopolitical tensions in Latin America and Asia.
Caution ahead of Friday’s U.S. nonfarm payrolls report also limited speculative activity in crypto markets, as investors sought clearer signals on the strength of the U.S. labour market and its implications for Federal Reserve policy.
Sentiment was further dampened by uncertainty surrounding crypto treasury companies, particularly Strategy Inc., one of the largest corporate holders of Bitcoin. The company, down nearly 50% so far in 2025, found only limited relief after MSCI said earlier this week that it would not proceed with plans to remove digital asset treasury firms from its indices.
Bitcoin was last down 2.4% at $90,449.9 by 03:35 ET.
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