Shares of chip designer Arm remained in focus early Friday, after jumping 25% in their stock-market debut a day earlier. The stock spiked in heavy volumes premarket, before handing back most of those gains.
Factory output and consumer spending both improved in August in China and unemployment declined further. The Chinese central bank cut a short-term lending rate, in another move to support the country’s recovery.
Most U.S. stock futures inched up. Contracts linked to the S&P 500 and the Dow rose crept higher, while Nasdaq-100 futures were flat.
“Triple witching” could add to Friday’s market drama, as many futures and options contracts expire.
Global indexes mostly rose. The pan-continental Stoxx Europe 600 and Japan’s Nikkei 225 both climbed around 1%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng also rose.
Oil kept gaining. The most actively traded contract for Brent crude edged above $94, on track for the highest close since November.
Treasury bonds held steady. The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield edged up slightly after closing Thursday at 4.289%.
European bonds fell. German and Italian 10-year yields rose—in a reversal of Thursday’s reaction to the European Central Bank’s interest-rate hike, according to Joost van Leenders, investment strategist at Van Lanschot Kempen.
Data watch: The Michigan consumer sentiment index for September is due out at 10 a.m. ET.
