US equity futures traded higher on Friday as markets continued to assess a rise in Treasury yields alongside developments in crude oil and a new set of corporate updates.
At 03:12 ET, Dow futures were 63 points higher, representing a 0.1% gain. S&P 500 futures also increased 0.1%, or 11 points, while Nasdaq 100 futures advanced 126 points, or 0.4%.
Thursday’s regular session ended with mixed results. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 declined, while the Nasdaq Composite finished 0.01% higher.
Government bond yields remained a focus after rising during the week as markets considered oil prices, US economic conditions and the outlook for Federal Reserve interest rates.
“One important theme at the moment is that Treasuries continue to sell-off with oil but that breakevens aren’t moving, with pretty much all the move being driven by real yields,” Deutsche Bank analysts said.
Treasury Yields Reach Multi-Year Highs
The US 10-year Treasury yield ended Thursday at 5.2%, its highest level since 2007. The 30-year yield, meanwhile, reached its highest level since 2004.
The 10-year yield recorded its largest two-day increase since US President Donald Trump’s announcement of the “Liberation Day” tariffs the previous year.
Markets have been adjusting their expectations for Federal Reserve policy following the central bank’s 25-basis-point rate increase the previous week.
According to the supplied information, energy-related inflation pressures were among the factors cited in connection with the rate decision.
Higher oil prices have recently coincided with rising government bond yields and periods of weakness in equity markets. However, longer-term yields reflect a range of factors, including inflation expectations, economic conditions and expectations for monetary policy.
Crude Oil Retreats Following Reports of US-Iran Discussions
Oil prices moved lower on Friday as markets considered reports of negotiations between the United States and Iran over a possible phased arrangement involving the Strait of Hormuz.
Crude benchmarks had climbed as much as 5% on Thursday before giving back part of those gains following reports of the discussions.
Earlier in the session, Saudi Arabia said it had intercepted six ballistic missiles launched by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis towards locations including Taif and the Yanbu region.
The incident followed earlier damage to Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline that had disrupted crude shipments to Yanbu, an export hub on the Red Sea connected to the country’s eastern oil-producing areas.
Saudi Arabia had increased crude flows towards Yanbu, although tanker loadings had yet to return fully to previous levels, according to the supplied information.
Subsequent reports said US and Iranian negotiators in New York were considering a phased framework that would involve Iran reopening the Strait of Hormuz in exchange for the lifting of the US economic blockade.
The reports did not indicate that a final agreement had been reached.
Musk Plans Further Expansion of Colossus 2
Elon Musk outlined plans to expand the computing capacity of the Colossus 2 data centre in Tennessee through the addition of more Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) processors.
Musk said in a post on X that the facility has used 110,000 Nvidia GB200 chips alongside 440,000 GB300 chips.
He said another 220,000 GB300 processors were expected to be operational by the following week, with a further 220,000 planned for November.
“If we get lucky, yet another 220k GB300 by late December,” Musk said in response to a post about xAI’s computing infrastructure.
Musk has previously called Colossus the “world’s largest AI supercomputer.” The original Colossus facility was built in 2024 to support the training of xAI’s Grok model.
Costco Reports 11.2% Increase in Fourth-Quarter Net Sales
Costco (NASDAQ:COST) reported fiscal fourth-quarter earnings and revenue above Wall Street estimates. Its shares were slightly lower in extended trading following the announcement.
The warehouse retailer reported earnings per share of $6.75, exceeding the consensus forecast of $6.55.
Revenue was $95.7 billion compared with analysts’ estimate of $94.85 billion.
Net sales increased 11.2% to $93.9 billion during the 16-week quarter, up from $84.4 billion in the comparable period a year earlier.
Adjusted earnings of $6.75 per share included a $0.15 non-recurring benefit from tariff refunds received during the quarter, partly offset by the reinvestment of some of those refunds in increased member value.
Fourth-quarter comparable sales increased 9.4% as reported. Excluding changes in gasoline prices and foreign exchange rates, comparable sales rose 6.7%, compared with an analyst estimate of 6.44%.
US comparable sales increased 10.7%, or 7.2% on an adjusted basis. Canadian comparable sales rose 5.0%, or 4.6% adjusted, while comparable sales in other international markets increased 7.0%, or 6.2% after adjustments.
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