In the long run, futures rose modestly earlier, as Wall Street sought to close sharply in afternoon trading.
Futures contracts related to the Dow Jones industrial average implied an opening gain of approximately 100 points. Futures for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 also traded in positive territory.
The futures move comes after stocks returned to trading on Thursday afternoon, with the Dow swinging more than 500 points as cyclical trades gained steam. The strong closing broke a recent trend of poor finishes on Wall Street and reduced weekly market losses. The Dow and S&P 500 have now fallen below 0.1% this week, while the Nasdaq Composite is down 1.8%.
“If you are positioned as we are, which means a cyclical and overweight recovery in the value sectors, you certainly can’t run a victory tour here. But it’s nice to see, after the last six days, that some of the trends that have been in force for better than six months seems to be reaffirming, “Jason Trennert, CEO of Strategas Research Partners, told CNBC’s” Closing Bell. “
Futures were boosted by banking stocks, which rose after the Fed announced that banks could resume redemptions and increase dividends from the end of June. The central bank initially said it would lift restrictions from the pandemic era in the first quarter, but even the delayed move gives investors more clarity.
“The banking system continues to be a source of strength and a return to our normal framework after this year’s stress test will maintain that strength,” Vice President for Supervision Randal Quarles said in a statement.
Shares of JPMorgan and Citigroup increased slightly in extended transactions, along with other major banks.
In terms of economic data, investors will take another look at inflation opportunities on Friday, with reports of personal income and consumer spending in February.