Stock futures were mixed on Friday as big US banks kicked off earnings season with upbeat profits, but the developing conflict in the Middle East kept investors on watch.
S&P 500 (^GSPC) futures fell about 0.1%, while Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) futures hovered just above the flatline, as both gauges pared earlier losses. Contracts on the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 (^NDX) were down 0.4%.
Wall Street banks got the third-quarter earnings season started in earnest on Friday, with reports from Wells Fargo (WFC) and BlackRock (BLK). JPMorgan (JPM) cemented its dominance among US lenders with a 35% surge in profits.
The results will be scrutinized for insight into how well banks are prepared for the Fed’s higher-for-longer interest rates and whether a two-year slump in dealmaking is finally waning.
Read more: What a Fed rate-hike pause means for bank accounts, CDs, loans, and credit cards
The 10-year Treasury yield (^TNX) fell amid signs Israel will soon launch a ground assault in Gaza, igniting fears the conflict could escalate and widen. Bond yields rose and stocks snapped a four-day run of wins on Thursday after data showed US headline inflation has remained sticky.
In commodities, oil prices jumped amid the Middle East concerns and after the US on Thursday tightened sanctions on sales of crude to Russia. Crude oil futures (CL=F) climbed 3.7%, while Brent crude futures (BZ=F) added 3.6%.
On the corporate side, the UK antitrust regulator gave the green light to Microsoft’s (MSFT) $69 billion deal to buy games company Activision Blizzard (ATVI), after the tech giant sold streaming rights.
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KStock futures drop with focus on big bank earnings
The major US stock gauges were trending lower on Friday, as BlackRock’s results led out the stream of Wall Street bank earnings expected to land.
Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) were down 0.16%, or 53 points, while S&P 500 (^GSPC) futures lost 0.32%. Contracts on the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 (^NDX) were 0.56% lower.
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