US stock futures rise after previous session’s selloff

On Friday, US stock index futures experienced a rebound following significant declines in the preceding session. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500, and Nasdaq 100 all saw gains, though analysts expected the week to conclude lower due to escalating government bond yields and geopolitical concerns. The S&P 500 and tech-focused Nasdaq were on track to break a three-week winning streak, while the Dow faced its steepest weekly loss since mid-March.

This was largely attributed to surging long-term U.S. Treasury yields, which raised worries about mounting government debt, increased borrowing costs, and ongoing inflation fears. The 30-year Treasury bond yield reached its highest level since 2007 earlier in the week.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced the possibility of further Treasury repurchases following a surprise intervention on Wednesday. However, yields remained near recent highs. Elwin de Groot, head of macro strategy at Rabobank, cautioned against interpreting the Thursday long-bond rally as a long-term trend. Instead, he suggested that part of it had already diminished.

Early Friday, most mega-cap stocks traded higher in premarket trading, with Meta and Tesla leading the gains with around a 1% increase each after Thursday's sell-off. At 7:08 am, the Dow E-minis rose 195 points (0.37%), the S&P 500 E-minis added 25.5 points (0.33%), and the Nasdaq 100 E-minis gained 175.5 points (0.60%).

Ross Stores saw an 8.1% increase after raising its annual profit forecasts and reporting better-than-expected second-quarter results. Crypto-linked companies continued to rise, with Bitcoin reaching its highest level since late May after U.S. President Donald Trump called for Congress to pass a crucial crypto bill. Coinbase Global increased by 5.4%, bitcoin-hoarder Strategy gained 9.6%, and retail-investor platform Robinhood climbed 4.8%.

Despite broader risk sentiment remaining subdued, Treasury Secretary Bessent announced the toughest sanctions in history on Iran, which he believed would reduce the need for new major military operations. The impasse between Washington and Tehran had kept oil prices high, although they slightly decreased on Friday.

UBS Global Wealth Management raised its year-end target for the S&P 500 to 8,100, citing a stronger earnings outlook and confidence in corporate profit growth remaining robust into the new year. Analysts expected a flash estimate of S&P Global's Purchasing Managers' Index survey for August, which would be released after market open.

Attention would shift to next week's Personal Consumption Expenditures, the U.S. Federal Reserve's preferred inflation gauge, after last week's modest inflation readings dampened expectations of an imminent rate hike from the central bank. Chair Kevin Warsh's speech at the Jackson Hole symposium would be closely watched for insights into the Fed's rate-cut trajectory.

AI bellwether Nvidia was scheduled to report quarterly earnings next week, providing another test for the AI trade following strong earnings from several AI infrastructure companies and major hyperscalers.