U.S. equity futures moved cautiously on Friday as investors balanced a heavy flow of corporate earnings and economic signals against easing geopolitical frictions between the United States and Europe. Intel (NASDAQ:INTL) posted a fourth-quarter loss and warned of additional pressure from supply constraints linked to booming demand from artificial intelligence data centres. At the same time, TikTok outlined a new joint venture designed to preserve its U.S. presence. Elsewhere, the Bank of Japan held interest rates steady while signalling a tightening bias, and gold surged to fresh record highs.
Futures trade near flat
Stock index futures in the U.S. hovered just below unchanged levels following a volatile week dominated by trade and geopolitical headlines. At 03:50 ET, Dow futures were down 33 points, or 0.1%, S&P 500 futures slipped 4 points, or 0.1%, and Nasdaq 100 futures declined 43 points, or 0.2%.
Wall Street ended higher in the previous session after President Donald Trump retreated from plans to impose additional tariffs on a number of European countries as early as February 1. Trump said on Thursday that the U.S. had secured full and permanent access to Greenland after talks with NATO allies. However, the lack of clarity around the agreement and Washington’s earlier demands regarding the semi-autonomous Danish territory continued to raise concerns among European officials.
As tensions over Greenland appeared to ease, market focus shifted back to an intensifying earnings season and the Federal Reserve’s policy decision scheduled for next week.
Intel flags tougher conditions
Intel shares fell sharply in extended trading after the chipmaker reported a loss for the fourth quarter and issued a cautious outlook for the current period. The company recorded a net loss of $333 million in the final quarter of its fiscal year, undershooting market expectations despite recent backing from major investors such as Nvidia and support from the U.S. government.
Management highlighted surging demand from AI-driven data centres as a key factor behind ongoing supply shortages across the semiconductor industry. Chief Financial Officer David Zinsner said these constraints could persist well into 2026.
For the first quarter, Intel now expects a loss of $0.21 per share, underlining the scale of the challenge facing Chief Executive Lip-Bu Tan as the company competes in an AI chip market dominated by Nvidia and rival Advanced Micro Devices. Investors were also left wanting more detail, as Intel deferred updates on customers for its foundry business and offered limited information on uptake of its next-generation 14A manufacturing technology.
“[T]here weren’t any customer announcements made for the 14A […] while some investors were hoping for a big name, like possibly Apple,” analysts at Vital Knowledge said in a note.
TikTok announces U.S. joint venture
TikTok said it will move forward with a Trump administration-backed joint venture that will allow the widely used short-form video app to continue operating in the United States. The platform has long been under scrutiny from U.S. lawmakers, who have raised concerns that its ownership structure — with parent company ByteDance based in China — poses risks to national security and data privacy.
Trump previously sought to ban TikTok in 2020 and later opted not to enforce a 2024 law passed by Congress that required ByteDance to divest its U.S. assets or face a nationwide ban. Under the new arrangement, TikTok’s U.S. operations will be managed by a newly created entity viewed as more aligned with Washington, with a mandate to protect user data and strengthen cybersecurity.
U.S. and international investors, including Oracle (NYSE:ORCL), private equity firm Silver Lake and Abu Dhabi-based MGX, will hold 80.1% of the joint venture, while ByteDance will retain a 20% stake. Trump, who has credited TikTok with helping him secure a second term in office, said the app “will now be owned by a group of Great American Patriots and Investors.”
Bank of Japan keeps rates unchanged
The Bank of Japan left interest rates unchanged on Friday, maintaining its benchmark overnight call rate at 0.75% following a rate increase in December. Eight of the nine members of the policy board supported the decision, while board member Hajime Takata dissented in favour of a 25 basis point hike.
While the pause was widely anticipated, the central bank upgraded its economic growth and inflation forecasts, citing expectations of increased fiscal support. Policymakers reiterated that rates would continue to rise if growth and inflation develop in line with projections, as they seek to anchor inflation around the 2% target.
The BOJ raised its real GDP growth forecast for fiscal 2025 to a range of 0.8% to 0.9%, up from its earlier estimate of 0.6% to 0.8%.
“Given that the real policy rate is still deeply negative, further policy tightening is therefore all but guaranteed,” Capital Economics analysts said, adding that they expect the central bank to move before at least July.
“Granted, the looming sharp fall in headline inflation puts the Bank in an awkward position, particularly if [Prime Minister Sanae] Takaichi also suspends the sales tax on food. But looking past those distortions, price pressures will remain firm.”
Gold surges to record highs
Gold prices climbed to record levels in Asian trading on Friday, edging closer to the closely watched $5,000-an-ounce mark after Trump’s comments on Iran boosted demand for safe-haven assets. Silver and platinum also reached fresh highs.
Spot gold rose as much as 0.7% to a record $4,967.48 an ounce, while February gold futures advanced more than 1% to $4,969.69. Spot silver jumped nearly 3% to $99.0275, and spot platinum gained almost 1% to $2,692.31 an ounce.
