US stock futures experienced a moment of stability on Thursday as investors took time to evaluate the outcomes of recent significant events, including the dialogue between President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, the latest Federal Reserve policy meeting, and the mixed earnings from major technology companies.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (YM=F) saw a slight decline of 0.2%. Meanwhile, futures for the S&P 500 (ES=F) and the Nasdaq 100 (NQ=F) fluctuated between minor gains and losses throughout the morning.
Market momentum appeared to slow following remarks from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, who emphasized that a potential interest rate cut in December is “not a foregone conclusion – far from it.” His statements followed the Fed’s recent decision to reduce its benchmark interest rate by a quarter percentage point, revealing a divide among policymakers regarding future monetary policy.
The recent meeting between Trump and Xi failed to energize the markets, ultimately producing a modest trade agreement that aligned with prevailing expectations. The deal comprises a slight reduction in overall US tariffs on Chinese goods in exchange for a pause in China’s restrictions on rare earth supplies and a commitment from China to resume purchases of US soybeans.
As attention shifted to upcoming quarterly results from tech giants Apple (AAPL) and Amazon (AMZN), the market reacted to earnings reports released from several major companies dubbed the “Magnificent Seven.” Alphabet (GOOG) saw a notable increase of over 7% after its quarterly results exceeded expectations. In contrast, shares of Meta (META) dropped nearly 8%, and Microsoft (MSFT) fell around 3% as investors analyzed the companies’ future outlooks.
In the pre-market session, Microsoft faced a decline partly due to slightly below expectations for its Azure cloud services. Despite Azure’s solid performance, analysts from Citi noted that these results could positively influence other consumption-based firms set to report in the coming weeks and months, including companies like Datadog (DDOG) and Snowflake (SNOW).
During a press briefing, Trump shared key takeaways from his lengthy trade discussion with Xi, which had garnered significant anticipation among investors.
In the automotive sector, Stellantis (STLA, STLAM.MI) reported a notable 13% year-over-year increase in revenue for its third-quarter earnings. However, shares of the automaker fell by over 4% prior to the opening bell, indicating a mixed reaction from investors.
Additionally, speculation is rising around OpenAI, with reports indicating that the tech company may be gearing up for a potentially record-setting initial public offering (IPO).
