U.S. equity futures regained some ground Thursday following steep losses triggered by Federal Reserve decisions, while a rebound in Asian shares and anticipation of fresh earnings drew investor focus. However, renewed U.S. military action against Iran, volatility in the bond market, and persistent concerns over artificial intelligence spending kept sentiment cautious.
At 4:14 p.m. (Bangkok Time), futures contracts linked to the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 129 points, or 0.25%. S&P 500 futures increased by 0.30%, and Nasdaq 100 futures climbed by 0.51%.
These modest premarket gains followed a turbulent trading session. On Wednesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average suffered its sharpest one-day decline since April 2025, shedding 1,153.18 points, or 2.19%. The S&P 500 retreated by 1.52%, and the Nasdaq Composite finished 1.74% lower.
Market attention turned to technology majors as investors reacted to quarterly reports from sector leaders. Meta Platforms saw its shares slide nearly 9% in early trading after the company’s results underscored ongoing doubts about profitability from artificial intelligence initiatives, extending the stock’s recent downturn. In contrast, Microsoft surged more than 8% after posting a milestone for its Azure cloud business, which surpassed $100 billion in revenue for the first time.
Focus now shifts to Amazon and Apple, with both companies set to report earnings Thursday. Amazon’s capital allocation and cloud strategy will be in the spotlight, while investors will look for updates on Apple’s profit margins amid rising memory chip costs.
Treasury yields moved sharply higher after the Federal Reserve maintained its current interest rate stance at Wednesday’s policy meeting. The yield on 30-year US government bonds climbed another 9 basis points Thursday to top 5.2%, extending a rise that brought it to levels last seen in 2007.
Investors are also awaiting several key economic indicators scheduled for release on Thursday, including the Personal Consumption Expenditures index for June, weekly continuing jobless claims, and a preliminary estimate of second-quarter GDP.
Thursday’s earnings calendar also features premarket results from Bristol-Myers Squibb, while Coinbase is set to release its numbers after the close.
