Tonight’s Highlights | U.S. Stock Index Futures Edge Higher Pre-Market, U.S. Government Shutdown Enters Day 10
On Friday (October 10), U.S. stock index futures rose slightly pre-market, hovering near record highs, with investors eyeing upcoming consumer confidence data for the latest economic clues.
As of this report, Dow Jones futures gained 0.17%, Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.14%, and S&P 500 futures climbed 0.12%.
The U.S. government shutdown entered its 10th day after the Senate’s seventh failed attempt to pass a temporary funding bill on Wednesday, with both Republican and Democratic proposals rejected. Efforts to end the “shutdown” quickly have failed again.
Currently, there are few signs of substantial progress in negotiations. With the deadlock persisting, investors struggle to find new market drivers without U.S. government economic data.
While companies like Delta Air Lines and PepsiCo reported solid quarterly results on Thursday, showing consumer demand remains, it’s not enough to sustain the stock market’s rally.
Fundstrat founder Tom Lee commented: “The market is trying to find balance amid multiple factors, as the government shutdown leaves us somewhat in the dark.”
However, U.S. Q3 earnings season officially kicks off next week, with major banks like Citigroup and JPMorgan reporting results.
Some analysts expect the AI trading frenzy, so far concentrated in tech, to spill into energy and construction, with data center buildout accelerating demand for related firms.
Recent data has reinforced expectations for looser policy. Despite the shutdown delaying official releases, alternative indicators show a softening U.S. labor market, with shutdown-related layoffs potentially adding pressure.
The University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index preliminary reading is due at 10 p.m. Beijing time tonight. With official data missing, it will draw extra scrutiny.
Investors are also watching Middle East developments. Under the ceasefire agreement, Israeli troops began withdrawing from parts of Gaza on Friday. Analysts say easing tensions could lift market sentiment, removing a major uncertainty weighing on stocks.
European markets in session were mixed: Germany’s DAX fell 0.11%, the UK’s FTSE 100 rose 0.01%, and France’s CAC 40 was flat.
Amid widespread political and economic uncertainty and expectations of further Fed rate cuts, spot gold rebounded from an early Friday dip, latest at $3,992 per ounce, poised for an eighth straight weekly gain.
Company News
Google Faces Stricter UK Scrutiny
On Friday local time, the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) stated that Alphabet’s Google holds “strategic market status” in search services under the new UK digital markets competition regime. Google A shares dipped 0.2% pre-market.
This marks the first company designated under the new rules effective earlier this year, subjecting its online search and advertising business to stricter antitrust review. The CMA’s decision followed a nearly nine-month investigation, citing Google’s “substantial and entrenched market power” in search and ads. Regulators raised concerns about search result fairness, high ad costs, and AI-generated responses.
Ford Delays Lithium Purchase from Liontown Amid EV Sales Slump
Ford will delay buying lithium from Australian producer Liontown Resources and cancel its EV tax credit application due to softening EV sales.
Liontown disclosed in a stock exchange filing that Ford will receive no lithium from its Kathleen Valley project in 2027 and 2028, and future deliveries will be halved to 256,250 tons. In exchange, Liontown deferred $300 million in loan repayments to Ford by one year.
Amazon Web Services Launches Agentic AI App Quick Suite
AWS announced the launch of Agentic AI app Amazon Quick Suite to boost employee productivity, transforming how they access insights, conduct deep research, automate tasks, visualize data, and execute cross-app workflows. Quick Suite connects internal knowledge bases, mainstream apps, and AWS services like Amazon S3 and Amazon Redshift, expanding to over 1,000 apps via MCP integration.