Futures Pointing To Initial Strength On Wall Street

(RTTNews) - The major U.S. index futures are currently pointing to a higher open on Wednesday, with stocks likely to move to the upside following the mixed performance seen in the previous session.

Technology stocks may help lead an early upward move on Wall Street, as reflected by the 0.6 percent advance by the Nasdaq 100 futures.

Shares of Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) are surging by 6.5 percent in pre-market trading after CEO Lisa Su predicted the chipmaker's annual revenue growth will average more than 35 percent over the next three to five years.

Su also said that AMD could be able to achieve "double-digit" share in the data center AI chip market that is currently dominated by Nvidia (NVDA).

Shares of Nvidia are also seeing significant pre-market strength after a steep drop by the AI darling weighed on the Nasdaq on Tuesday.

The upward momentum on Wall Street also comes as the House of Representatives prepares to vote on a bill ending the longest government shutdown in U.S. history.

After the Senate voted Monday to approve the bill extending funding for most agencies until January 30th, the House is set to vote on the legislation later this evening.

Following the rally seen to start the week, the major U.S. stock indexes moved in starkly opposite directions during trading on Tuesday.

While the Dow extended the strong upward move seen on Monday and the S&P 500 recovered from early weakness, the tech-heavy Nasdaq slipped back to the downside.

The Dow jumped 559.33 points or 1.2 percent to finish at 47,927.96 and the S&P 500 rose 14.18 points or 0.2 percent to end at 6,846.61, but the Nasdaq fell 58.87 points or 0.3 percent to close at 23,468.30.

The mixed performance on Wall Street came as traders expressed some uncertainty about the near-term outlook for the markets - especially the possibility of a tech bubble - following recent volatility.

Stocks had rallied on Monday amid optimism about an end to the record-setting U.S. government shutdown, regaining ground following the considerable weakness seen in last week.

However, valuation concerns continue to hang over the markets, as traders had largely shrugged off worries about the economic impact of the shutdown.

The continued advance by the Dow came amid strong gains by Nike (NKE), Merck (MRK) and Amgen (AMGN).

Meanwhile, a 3.0 percent slump by shares of Nvidia (NVDA) weighed on the Nasdaq after Softbank sold its entire stake in the chipmaker for more than $5 billion.

Commodity, Currency Markets

Crude oil futures are slumping $0.85 to $60.19 a barrel after jumping $0.91 to $61.04 a barrel on Tuesday. Meanwhile, an ounce of gold is trading at $4,135.20, up $18.90 compared to the previous session's close of $4,116.30. On Tuesday, gold edged down $5.70.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 154.96 yen compared to the 154.15 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Tuesday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.1567 compared to yesterday's $1.1580.

Asia

Asian stocks ended mixed on Wednesday as concerns persisted about a potential artificial intelligence-driven market bubble and new data added to signs of a weakening U.S. labor market.

Gold steadied after three days of gains, while the dollar rebounded as Washington edged toward ending the record government shutdown.

The House of Representatives will vote today on a spending bill to solve the six-week standoff after the Senate on Monday passed a bill that will fund the government through January 30.

Oil prices drifted lower in Asian trading after gaining about $1 on Tuesday.

China's Shanghai Composite Index finished marginally lower at 4,000.14 as investors shifted focus back to economic fundamentals.

China is due to release October credit data as well as other key retail sales, industrial output and investment reports this week.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index advanced 0.9 percent to 26,922.73 a day after the People's Bank of China said it would maintain "appropriately loose" monetary policy, keep liquidity ample and improve policy transmission.

Japanese markets rose after Sony raised its profit outlook. The Nikkei 225 Index gained 0.4 percent to end at 51,063.31, while the broader Topix Index settled 1.1 percent higher at 3,359.33.

Sony shares jumped 3.7 percent. Technology investor SoftBank Group lost 3.5 percent and Tokyo Electron, a global leader in semiconductor equipment manufacturing, fell 1.6 percent.

Seoul stocks rose sharply to extend gains for a third day running, driven by eased concerns over the U.S. government shutdown. The Kospi surged 1.1 percent to 4,150.39, with auto and energy stocks leading the surge. Hyundai Motor gained 2.4 percent and SK Innovation added 3.4 percent.

Australian markets ended lower as investors fretted over lofty tech valuations. Lithium miners drove commodity stocks higher, helping limit losses in the broader market.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index dipped 0.2 percent to 8,799.50, while the broader All Ordinaries Index closed down 0.2 percent at 9,079.40.

Commonwealth Bank of Australia tumbled 3.1 percent to extend losses from the previous session after warning of margin pressures.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 Index rose 0.5 percent to close at a record high of 13,671.73 points.

Europe

European stocks hit a new record peak on Wednesday as an effort to end the longest-ever U.S. government shutdown headed to a final vote in the House of Representatives.

Investors also cheered data that showed German consumer price inflation weakened in October after rising for two straight months.

The consumer price index logged an annual increase of 2.3 percent, which was slower than the 2.4 percent rise in September, according to final data from Destatis. The rate came in line with the estimate released on October 30.

"The continued above-average rise in service prices was a driving force behind inflation," Destatis President Ruth Brand said.

EU harmonized inflation weakened to 2.3 percent October from 2.4 percent in September, in line with estimates.

The French CAC 40 Index and the German DAX Index are both by 1.3 percent, although the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is nearly unchanged.

LEG Immobilien advanced 1.6 percent. After posting strong nine-month results, the German real estate group said it is on track to meet its annual targets.

Power producer RWE jumped 3.3 percent after nine-month profit beat expectations.

Infineon gained 1 percent. The chipmaker significantly raised its 2026 sales target for the AI power supply segment.

Pharmaceutical and agricultural giant Bayer rallied 2.4 percent after its third-quarter adjusted profit beat market view.

Swiss Life, Switzerland's biggest life insurer, fell 2.3 percent after posting mixed results for the first nine months of 2025.

Dutch bank ABN AMRO gained 2.4 percent after it reached an agreement to acquire domestic commercial lender NIBC Bank from private equity firm Blackstone.

British defense group BAE Systems rose about 1 percent after backing its annual outlook.

Housebuilder Taylor Wimpey tumbled 3.2 percent after weekly average for number of private sales per site dropped 11 percent in key autumn period.

French voucher provider Edenred slumped 8.2 percent after warning it would cut its 2026 profit guidance.

U.S. Economic News

New York Federal Reserve President John Williams is due to speak before the 2025 U.S. Treasury Market Conference co-hosted by the Federal Reserve System and the Treasury Department at 9:20 am ET.

At 10 am ET, Philadelphia Federal Reserve President Anna Paulson is scheduled to speak on Fintech before the Ninth Annual Fintech Conference.

Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller is due to participate in a "Payments" discussion before the Ninth Annual Fintech Conference at 10:20 am ET.

At 12:15 pm ET, Atlanta Federal Reserve President Raphael Bostic is scheduled to speak on the economic outlook before the Atlanta Economics Club November luncheon.

Federal Reserve Governor Stephen Miran is due to participate in a conversation before an event hosted by the University of Cambridge Judge Business School at 12:30 pm ET.

At 1 pm ET, the Treasury Department is scheduled to announce the results of this month's auction of $42 billion worth of ten-year notes.

Boston Federal Reserve President Susan Collins is due to speak on "Perspectives on the Economy and the Financial Landscape" and participate in a moderated discussion before the 24th Annual Regional and Community Bankers Conference at 4 pm ET.