By Tharuniyaa Lakshmi and Shashwat Chauhan
Oct 9 (Reuters) – US stock indexes were set for a higher open on Friday as oil prices retreated on easing Middle East supply concerns, though telecom shares remained under pressure after SpaceX’s spectrum acquisition raised competitive concerns across the sector.
Oil prices fell after US President Donald Trump said on Thursday the country will not attack Iran before US midterm elections next month, easing fears that the conflict could further disrupt global energy supplies.
Brent crude prices were down over 1%, but were still trading over the psychologically important $100-a-barrel mark. [O/R]
US Treasury yields were also calmer, with the benchmark 10-year yield steady at 5.24% but holding close to the 24-year high of 5.364% hit on Wednesday.
The benchmark S&P 500 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq were headed for weekly gains despite pulling back over the previous two sessions as optimism around an AI-driven third-quarter earnings season pushed both the indexes to record highs earlier this week.
The blue-chip Dow was also on track for slim weekly gains and the equal-weighted S&P 500 index was on track to snap a seven-week losing streak.
“Strong earnings, guidance and evidence of sustained AI demand could quickly rebuild conviction and put new highs back on the radar,” said Chris Weston, head of research at Pepperstone.
Megacap growth stocks were broadly higher on the day, with Nvidia up 1.5% premarket, Tesla rising 1.3%, while Amazon.com and Alphabet were slightly higher.
Chip stocks were broadly higher a day after dropping sharply following reports that OpenAI’s annualized revenue was $20 billion less than the company previously signaled. An ETF tracking US chipmakers rose 1.6%.
SpaceX gained 3.2% after the rocket and satellite maker struck a deal to acquire a nationwide low-band spectrum portfolio, mounting a direct, orbital challenge to legacy wireless giants across the US.
Telecom firms traded lower, with T-Mobile US down 7.2%, AT&T falling 6.9% and Verizon easing 5.7%.
At 8:43 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were up 29 points, or 0.06%, and S&P 500 E-minis were up 22.25 points, or 0.28%. Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 193.75 points, or 0.63%.
The quarterly earnings season picks up pace next week with big banks set to report results. Optimism around strong earnings has buoyed US stocks lately despite shaky geopolitical developments and concerns about rising interest rates.
“The banks are great to figure out: are people borrowing, and what the situation looks like right now …that is also going to give us data as to what the Fed may or may not do,” said Kim Forrest, chief investment officer at Bokeh Capital Partners.
Among early movers, Humana climbed 16.6% after US government data showed 95% of the health insurer’s members were in Medicare Advantage plans rated four stars or higher for 2027.
Apple fell 2.5% after a media report that the iPhone maker has told some suppliers to cut production of components for its newly launched iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max, as soaring memory chip costs and price increases dampen consumer demand.
Delta Air Lines dropped 2.5%, as the company cut its annual profit forecast by nearly a quarter at the midpoint of the range.
(Reporting by Tharuniyaa Lakshmi and Shashwat Chauhan in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)
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