U.S. Stocks May Lack Direction After Yesterday's Advance

(RTTNews) - The major U.S. index futures are currently pointing to a roughly flat open on Thursday, with stocks likely to show a lack of direction after ending the previous session mostly higher.

A lack of major U.S. economic data may keep some traders on the sidelines, as the ongoing U.S. government shutdown continues to indefinitely delay the release of key reports.

The Labor Department was due to share its report on weekly jobless claims this morning, but the release has been delayed as the shutdown enters its ninth day.

Traders have largely shrugged off concerns about the economic impact of the shutdown but may start to pay greater attention to developments in Washington as the suspension of non-essential government services drags on.

Lawmakers in Washington continue to struggle to pass a temporary funding bill due in part to Democrats' demands that the legislation include an extension of enhanced Obamacare tax credits.

Remarks by several Federal Reserve officials may also attract attention, although Fed Chair Jerome Powell's welcoming remarks at a Community Bank Conference did not provide any insight into the outlook for interest rates.

Fed Governor Michael Barr and Fed Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman are also scheduled to deliver remarks later this afternoon.

Following the pullback seen in the previous session, stocks moved back to the upside during trading on Wednesday. The Nasdaq and the S&P 500 more than offset Tuesday's losses, reaching new record closing highs.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq led the way higher, jumping 255.02 points or 1.1 percent to 23,043.38, while the S&P 500 climbed 39.13 points or 0.6 percent to 6,753.72. The narrower Dow ended the day little changed, edging down 1.20 points or less than a tenth of a percent to 46,601.78.

The strength on Wall Street partly reflected a notable advance by shares of Nvidia (NVDA), with the AI darling and market leading surging by 2.2 percent to a record closing high.

Nvidia moved high after CEO Jensen Huang told CNBC's "Squawk Box" artificial intelligence computing demand has increased "substantially" in the last six months.

Stocks saw continued strength even after the minutes of the Federal Reserve's September revealed participants expressed a range of views about the likely future path of monetary policy.

Most judged that it likely would be appropriate to ease policy further over the remainder of this year, the Fed said, although some noted financial conditions warrant a cautious approach in the consideration of future policy changes.

Computer hardware stocks showed a substantial move to the upside on the day, driving the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index up by 4.3 percent to a record closing high.

Networking and semiconductor stocks also turned in strong performances, contributing to the jump by the tech-heavy Nasdaq.

Outside of the tech sector, gold stocks saw considerable strength amid a continued surge by the price of the precious metal, with the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index shooting up 2.8 percent.

Steel and airline stocks also showed notable moves to the upside, while some weakness was visible among banking stocks.

Commodity, Currency Markets

Crude oil futures are edging down $0.10 to $62.45 a barrel after advancing $0.82 to $62.55 a barrel on Wednesday. Meanwhile, after soaring $66.10 to $4,070.50 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are slipping $9.50 to $4,061 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 152.74 yen versus the 152.68 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Wednesday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.1611 compared to yesterday's $1.1626.

Asia

Asian stocks ended mostly higher on Thursday, with chipmaker and related stocks leading the charge on optimism over artificial intelligence.

Dovish-leaning minutes from the Federal Reserve's September meeting also fueled hopes for more rate cuts ahead of an upcoming address by Fed Chair Jerome Powell later in the day.

Chinese markets rallied as trading resumed following the National Day holidays. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index surged 1.3 percent to 3,933.97 as renewed optimism for artificial intelligence offset reports of weak consumer spending during the eight-day holiday week.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index dipped 0.3 percent to 26,752.59, with Sino-U.S. trade tensions in focus after the Trump administration intensified its crackdown on Chinese technology companies and China tightened its rules on the export of rare earths.

Shares of HSBC Holdings slumped 6 percent after the lender proposed taking its troubled Hong Kong subsidiary Hang Seng Bank Ltd. Private.

Japanese markets jumped to reach new record highs as the yen held steady after touching its weakest level against the dollar since February.

The Nikkei 225 Index shot up 1.8 percent to 48,580.44, with tech stocks leading the way. The broader Topix Index settled 0.7 percent higher at 3,257.77.

Tech investor SoftBank Group soared 11.4 percent and robot manufacturer Yaskawa Electric spiked 9.5 percent after the former announced a deal to acquire the robotics division of Swiss engineering firm ABB.

South Korean markets remained closed for a holiday. Australian stocks eked out modest gains to snap a three-day decline.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index rose 0.3 percent to 8,969.80 as stronger metals prices and a wave of rare earths deals boosted heavyweight mining stocks.

Technology stocks also followed their U.S. peers higher despite concerns of an artificial intelligence bubble. The broader All Ordinaries Index closed up 0.3 percent at 9,276.60.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 Index finished marginally higher at 13,570.86.

Europe

European stocks are turning in a mixed performance on Thursday, with U.K. markets underperforming due to losses by heavyweight banking stocks.

On a light day on the economic front, data from Destatis revealed German exports dropped 0.5 percent in August from July, confounding expectations for an increase of 0.3 percent. This followed a decline of 0.2 percent in July.

At the same time, the decline in imports worsened to 1.3 percent from 0.7 percent. The pace of decline was also sharper than the forecast of 0.5 percent.

On a yearly basis, exports logged a decrease of 3.9 percent after rising 1.4 percent. Imports rose at a slower pace of 1.0 percent following July's 4.4 percent increase.

While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is down by 0.2 percent, the French CAC 40 Index and the German DAX Index are both up by 0.5 percent.

Suedzucker, Europe's largest sugar producer, has risen despite reporting an 82 percent decrease in quarterly operating profit in the face of weak sugar markets.

Renewable energy leader Drax Group has also gained after announcing it has begun a £450 million share buyback extension to reduce capital.

Residential landlord Grainger has also jumped after reporting strong rental growth in its trading update ahead of its full-year 2025 results due November 20.

French IT consulting firm Alten has also moved higher after announcing it would separate the roles of chairman and CEO as part of a governance overhaul.

On the other hand, Gerresheimer has plummeted after the packaging and medical equipment maker cut its 2025 guidance for the third time this year.

HSBC Holdings has also moved sharply lower. The lender has proposed taking its troubled Hong Kong subsidiary Hang Seng Bank Ltd. Private.

Lloyds Banking Group has also tumbled after it warned of additional provision linked to car finance mis-selling.

U.S. Economic News

Federal Reserve Governor Michael Barr is due to speak on the economic outlook before an Economic Club of Minnesota luncheon at 12:45 pm ET.

At 1 pm ET, the Treasury Department is scheduled to announce the results of this month's auction of $22 billion worth of thirty-year bonds.

Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman is due to deliver speak on "Looking Toward the Future" at the Community Bank Conference at 3:45 pm ET.

At 6:40 pm ET, San Francisco Federal Reserve President Mary Daly is scheduled to participate in a moderated conversation before the Silicon Valley Directors Exchange.