MARKETS LIVE: US futures gain as Anthropic deal lifts Akamai

Wall Street closed out the week on a high note Friday, with all three major indexes finishing higher even as bond yields climbed.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average led the way, jumping 479 points, or 0.9%, to close at 51,829. The S&P 500 added 39 points, up 0.5%, to 7,743, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 129 points, also up 0.5%, to 27,069.

The gains came despite a sell-off in bonds that pushed the 10-year Treasury yield up to 5.18%. Investors largely shrugged it off, helped along by easing oil prices amid growing optimism that a deal could be reached to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

On the geopolitical front, President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping wrapped up their meetings Friday afternoon, capping a week that included a Thursday dinner with dozens of tech leaders. The two countries also announced plans to hold an AI summit in Shenzhen, China, in November, where officials are expected to discuss issues including AI safety.

Looking ahead, investors will be watching earnings from Micron, Carnival Corp (NYSE:CCL), and Nike next week for fresh signals on consumer spending and the broader economic outlook.

Next week "will be busy," according to analysts at Wells Fargo.

"We expect consumer spending to rise 0.8% in August, while income growth of 0.5% and annual BEA revisions should show a resilient U.S. economy," analysts wrote.

"The PCE deflator is expected to firm in August, although broader revisions should leave the recent inflation trend somewhat softer. On Friday, we expect payroll growth to moderate to 90K in September, with the unemployment rate holding steady at 4.1%."

Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ:MSFT) (Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ:MSFT)) shares rose over 3% in morning trading Friday after the software company unveiled an expanded version of its Copilot artificial intelligence (AI) assistant.

Microsoft introduced three new Copilot features, Home, Code and Autopilot, which are designed to give users broader access to workplace information, software development tools and automated tasks.

The release comes as Microsoft seeks to increase adoption of Copilot among corporate customers and deepen the role of artificial intelligence across its software products.

The dollar is giving back some ground after five straight sessions of gains took it to its strongest level since July, with softer oil prices and a pullback in Treasury yields taking some pressure off the greenback, according to IG chief technical analyst Axel Rudolph.

“The US dollar's second week of straight gains to a near two-month high has come to a halt as softer oil prices and signs of US-Iran talks over reopening the Strait of Hormuz ease inflation concerns," Rudolph wrote.

"However, the greenback remains supported by expectations of tighter Fed policy as longer-dated US Treasury yields hit two-decade highs amid resilient US economic activity and heightened tensions in the Middle East, while the yen strengthens in the midst of renewed US-Japan intervention concerns."

In London, the FTSE 100 index closed about 0.1% higher at 10.695 points. The index was up 0.3% for the week.

Wall Street opened slightly higher on Friday as a recent sell-off in the bond market showed signs of easing, while falling oil prices offered some relief to investors.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 93 points, or 0.2%, to 51,443, while the S&P 500 was little changed at 7,705 and the Nasdaq added 10 points, or less than 0.1%, to 26,949.

Investors remain focused on Treasuries after the 10-year yield climbed to a new post-financial crisis high on Thursday. The benchmark yield moved higher again at Friday's open, keeping pressure on stocks.

Oil prices, meanwhile, fell overnight following reports of US-Iran diplomatic discussions around a potential phased deal that could reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Brent crude traded below $100 a barrel at the open and was down about 5% for the week.

Costco shares provided a bright spot, rising 2.5% after the retailer beat Wall Street estimates on both revenue and earnings.

Dow Jones, S&P 500, and Nasdaq 100 futures all slipped from our previous update, though each remained higher for the day.

Wall Street ended Thursday mixed, with the Dow and S&P 500 declining while the Nasdaq Composite edged higher. Investors have been balancing enthusiasm for artificial intelligence against geopolitical uncertainty and a sell-off in government bonds.

Nebius led the gainers, climbing 7.44% to $243.48, while Gen Digital was the biggest loser, falling 12.05% to $23.07.

Falling oil prices offered relief as US-Iran talks raised hopes of reopening the Strait of Hormuz. However, surging Treasury yields and expectations of further Federal Reserve tightening continued to weigh on sentiment.

Dow Jones futures rose 169.00 points to 51,886.00, S&P 500 futures gained 27.75 points to 7,794.75 and Nasdaq 100 futures climbed 199.25 points to 30,966.00, signalling a firmer Wall Street opening.

Akamai Technologies surged 21.3% in premarket trading after securing a seven-year, $11.6 billion cloud services commitment from Anthropic.

People Incorporated gained 6.5% following a Wall Street Journal report that MGM Resorts International (NYSE:MGM) was considering a takeover bid. Select Water Solutions rose 5.5% after agreeing to acquire Pilot Water Solutions for $700 million, plus potential contingent payments.

Comcast slipped 1.6% following a KeyBanc downgrade, while Twilio lost 3.7% after HSBC cut its rating. Scholastic tumbled 11% after quarterly revenue and earnings missed expectations.

In London, the FTSE 100 stood at 10,709.90, up 29.91 points on the day and recovering 7.09 points since our previous update.

Main indices surrendered some morning gains. The FTSE 100 slipped from 10,732.50, while the FTSE 250 eased from 24,333.99.

Both remained above their previous closes, with blue chips ahead by 22.82 points and mid-caps up 153.25 points.

Across Europe, easing oil prices offered relief to energy-intensive businesses, while upbeat earnings helped counter pressure from rising bond yields. The STOXX 600 was on course to end a three-week losing streak, although expectations of further monetary tightening continued to cloud the outlook.

London stocks extended their morning gains, with mid-caps making the stronger advance. The FTSE 100 rose from 10,727.40, while the FTSE 250 climbed from 24,266.63.

The moves left the indices up 52.51 and 179.67 points, respectively, from their previous closes.

US-Iran diplomatic talks supported sentiment as ceasefire hopes pushed oil prices lower. However, reduced shipping through the Strait of Hormuz and widening Houthi strikes on Saudi Arabia tempered optimism.

The FTSE 100 gained 46 points, or 0.4%, to 10,726, while the FTSE 250 rose 114 points, or 0.5%, to 24,268. AIM advanced 0.3%.

The rally broadened beyond miners, with Computacenter climbing 3.2%, Smiths Group (LSE:SMIN) rising 2.3%, Aberdeen adding 1.9% and Standard Chartered gaining 1.7%.

Property and industrial shares supported the mid-cap index. Harworth Group (LSE:HWG) rose 5.1%, Hill & Smith advanced 4.1% and Vistry gained 3.4%.

Raspberry Pi moved sharply against the wider market, dropping 9.9% to lead the FTSE 250 fallers.

Energy shares remained weak, with Ithaca Energy down 3.2%, BP falling 2.3% and Harbour Energy losing 2.6%.

The FTSE 100 gained 53 points, or 0.5%, to 10,733, while the FTSE 250 rose 130 points, also 0.5%, to 24,285.

Miners dominated the blue-chip leaderboard. Glencore climbed 3%, Anglo American advanced 2.6%, and Antofagasta gained 2.6%. Fresnillo rose 2.4%, and Endeavour Mining added 2%.

Oil producers moved sharply in the opposite direction as crude prices retreated. Ithaca Energy dropped 3.1%, BP fell 2.5%, and Shell declined 1%.

Halma, International Consolidated Airlines and Smiths Group (LSE:SMIN) also gained around 2%, broadening the early advance beyond mining.

The FTSE 100 is expected to open higher on Friday as retreating oil prices offer some relief from inflation concerns and UK consumer confidence improves.

IG’s latest indication placed the blue-chip index at around 10,714, up 32 points or 0.3%. The overnight market traded between 10,675 and 10,749.

British households became unexpectedly more optimistic in September. The GfK consumer confidence index rose to minus 13 from minus 14, beating expectations for a decline to minus 16 and reaching its highest level since August 2024. Confidence in personal finances reached an eight-month high.

Oil prices retreated following their recent advance. Brent crude fell 1.1% to US$105.47 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate dropped 1.8% to US$92.91. The pullback could ease pressure on consumer and rate-sensitive shares, although it may weigh on BP and Shell.

Gold edged 0.1% higher to US$4,302.97 an ounce, while silver added 0.1% to US$64.07. Copper slipped 0.3% to around US$6.76 per pound.

Wall Street finished broadly unchanged following a volatile session. The S&P 500 eased less than 0.1% to 7,704.13, the Nasdaq was virtually flat at 26,939.37 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.3% to 51,349.98.

Government bonds remained the principal source of caution. The US ten-year Treasury yield traded around 5.19% after reaching a 19-year high of 5.23%, while the 30-year yield approached 5.5%, its highest level since 2004.

Asian markets were mixed as investors continued to assess elevated global borrowing costs. Japan’s Nikkei gained around 1%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell about 1%. Mainland China, Taiwan and South Korea were closed for holidays.

Australia’s ASX 200 fell around 0.5%, leaving it near its lowest closing level since June. Technology and consumer-discretionary shares led the weakness, while defensive sectors provided limited support.

Bitcoin traded near US$84,160, up around 0.2%.

The London corporate calendar is relatively light. US durable-goods orders and the final University of Michigan consumer-sentiment reading will provide the main economic focus later in the session.