US stock futures rose on Friday, with the Nasdaq 100 leading gains as lower oil prices eased one of the inflation pressures that had rattled markets earlier in the week.
Nasdaq 100 futures advanced about 137 points, or 0.6%, while S&P 500 futures gained roughly 0.3% and Dow futures edged 0.2% higher.
The moves followed Thursday’s rebound, when the Nasdaq climbed 1.7% and the S&P 500 rose 1.1% after investors reassessed the Federal Reserve’s first rate increase in more than three years.
Brent crude fell towards $102.60 a barrel and WTI slipped below $100, helping take some pressure off longer-dated Treasury yields.
5 things to know before Wall Street opens
1. The BoJ hikes rates, and the yen reaction matters for Wall Street
The Bank of Japan raised its policy rate by 25 basis points to 1.25%, the highest since 1995, as policymakers stepped up efforts to prevent underlying inflation from overshooting their 2% target. The decision passed by a 7-2 vote.
Yet the yen weakened rather than strengthened, falling towards 158 per dollar as investors focused on the two dissenting votes and Governor Kazuo Ueda’s cautious guidance on how quickly additional tightening might follow.
That reaction matters for Wall Street. Japanese investors hold about $2.5 trillion in US stocks, bonds and other securities.
As domestic Japanese yields rise, some of that capital could eventually become more attractive to bring home, potentially reducing demand for US assets and putting upward pressure on Treasury yields.
2. Falling oil is giving growth stocks some breathing room
Brent dropped more than 2% and WTI fell below $100 as traders became more confident Saudi Arabia can restore export capacity after damage to its East-West pipeline.
The retreat matters because this week’s oil spike had revived inflation fears and helped push the 10-year Treasury yield above 5%.
With crude and yields easing, some of the discount-rate pressure on long-duration technology shares has faded.
3. Nvidia and Alphabet put the AI trade back in focus
Nvidia gained about 1% before the bell and Alphabet rose roughly 2%, keeping the Nasdaq on course for a weekly gain.
Goldman Sachs strategist Ben Snider said in research this week that unusually strong S&P 500 earnings have been helped by AI capital expenditure and exceptional semiconductor margins.
His base case is for profit growth to slow rather than collapse, suggesting the AI earnings story remains intact but becomes harder to repeat.
4. Quarterly derivatives expiry could distort Friday’s moves
Friday brings the simultaneous expiry of major stock and index derivatives contracts, an event that can produce unusually heavy trading volume and abrupt index moves.
RGA Investments chief investment officer Rick Gardner told MarketWatch that the expiry could magnify volatility because it comes immediately after a Fed hike and during an already difficult September for equities.
That means Friday’s tape may reflect positioning and hedging flows as much as investors’ fundamental view.
5. Xenon plunges after pausing enrolment in depression trials
Xenon Pharmaceuticals fell about 28% before the bell after temporarily pausing new enrolment in trials of azetukalner for major and bipolar depression.
The company said the decision followed reports of neurological and psychiatric side effects.
Existing patients can continue treatment while Xenon evaluates dosing changes, and its separate epilepsy programme remains active.
The drop makes Xenon one of Friday’s largest individual premarket movers even as the broader technology-led tone remains positive.
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