U.S. stock futures trended lower early Friday following the stellar rally in major indices yesterday, triggered by the Federal Reserve’s much-awaited interest rate cut. Futures on the S&P 500 (SPX) and the Nasdaq 100 (NDX) were down 0.16% and 0.25%, respectively, at 2:45 a.m. EST, September 20, while futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) moved lower by 0.03%.
On Thursday, the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones rose 1.7% and 1.26%, respectively, while the Nasdaq Composite closed higher by 2.51%. In fact, the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones closed above the 5,700 and 42,000 levels, respectively, for the first time. Favorable initial jobless claims data also fueled the rally.
In major news, Nike (NKE) shares jumped after the company announced that CEO John Donahue will step down from his position next month. In contrast, shares of logistics giant FedEx (FDX) plunged after the company lowered its full-year outlook and reported weak Fiscal Q1 results.
Meanwhile, the U.S. 10-year treasury yield moved lower on Friday, floating near 3.713% at the time of writing. Further, the WTI crude oil futures are trending down, hovering near $71.80 per barrel as of the last check.
Elsewhere, European markets are expected to open lower as traders react to the U.K.’s Bank of England and Norway’s Norges Bank’s decisions to hold interest rates steady.
Asia Pacific Markets Traded Mixed on Friday
Asia Pacific markets trended mixed today. The Bank of Japan held its benchmark interest rate unchanged at around 0.25%, the highest level since 2008. In reaction, Japan’s Nikkei was up 1.38%, while the Topix moved higher by 0.94%.
Meanwhile, the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) kept its benchmark lending rates steady, with the one-year loan prime rate (LPR) at 3.35% and the five-year LPR at 3.85%. At the time of writing, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index was up 1%, while China’s Shanghai Composite Index and the Shenzhen Component Index were down 0.37% and 0.49%, respectively.
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