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postUS stock futures rose on Wednesday, set to recover from the tech-led selloff as investors awaited earnings from Nvidia (NVDA) that will set the tone for the next leg of the AI trade.
Nasdaq 100 futures (NQ=F) moved up 0.5%, while those on the S&P 500 (ES=F) added 0.4%. Contracts on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (YM=F), which includes fewer tech names, edged up 0.2% on the heels of another day for sharp losses for stocks.
Investors are bracing for Nvidia’s third-quarter earnings due after Wednesday’s close, which are expected to swing the stock up to 7% in either direction. More broadly, the chipmaking giant’s results could prove a make-or-break moment for this year’s strong S&P 500 (^GSPC) rally, which has been spurred by optimism for AI-fueled growth.
Concerns about Big Tech’s massive spending on the AI buildout have fed into multiday declines for the Dow (^DJI), S&P 500, and the Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC), as high-profile investors offload holdings. Unease is growing that the likes of Amazon (AMZN) are stepping up their borrowing to fund AI ambitions just as the Federal Reserve looks set to put a brake on interest-rate cuts.
Given that, Fed minutes set for release later will be put under the microscope for insight into the economy and future policy. While that meeting delivered a rate cut despite division at the Fed, traders are now evenly split on whether the central bank will ease again in December.
That view could shift on Thursday, when the market gets the September jobs report — the first major data release since the government shutdown delayed economic updates.
With fresh data still sparse, big-box retailer earnings on Wednesday could offer the clearest read on the state of US consumer spending heading into the holiday season. Target (TGT) cut its earnings outlook and flagged a weak holiday season, while Lowe’s (LOW) posted upbeat sales.
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Nvidia caps Mag 7 earnings with a dose of AI jitters
Yahoo Finance’s Hamza Shaban reports:
The scene at the AI party right now is a confusing one. At the same moment the industry’s loudest cheerleaders are insisting that the night is still young, some of the more influential partygoers are heading for the exits or have already left.
Take Nvidia (NVDA), which operates as a financial and cultural symbol of AI exuberance, but also, more concretely, as a linchpin for the AI transition and the tech industry at large.
Shares of the chipmaker are up nearly 40% for the year, but the recent wave of AI jitters has dragged the stock down by double digits from the highs of October. And high-profile investors, who retail traders look to as de facto influencers, have sold off their holdings. …
The exits are important because, as traders look to the widely followed investors for guidance, they could advance the narrative of a wider AI pullback.
There’s no need to overstate the case, though. That two notable funds unloaded their Nvidia shares is far from any kind of definitive blow. Even after absorbing the skittishness of recent weeks, Nvidia is still a $4.5 trillion company rather than a $5 trillion one.
A frazzled AI trade is still a lucrative play. But hedging, nuance, and ambiguity are seeping in.
Read more here in the takeaway from today’s Morning Brief.
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Target slashes earnings outlook, warns on holiday season
Discount retailer Target (TGT) stock fell 2% before the bell on Wednesday after the company slashed its full-year profit guidance and provided a cautious outlook for the holiday season, as cash-strapped consumers struggle with the affordability crisis for food, healthcare, and housing.
Yahoo Finance’s executive editor Brian Sozzi reports on the latest from the US retail giant.
Read more here.
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Goldman’s Waldron says markets are primed for possible further declines
Bloomberg reports:
Goldman Sachs Group Inc (GS). President John Waldron said markets are primed for possible further declines and investors will be keeping close tabs on the upcoming key earnings report from technology leader Nvidia Corp. (NVDA)
“It strikes me the market could pull back further from here,” Waldron said in an interview on the sidelines of the Bloomberg New Economy Forum in Singapore on Wednesday. “I do think the technicals are kind of more biased for more protection, and more downside.”
The S&P 500 (^GSPC) is down more than 3% this month, on course for its worst month since March, while volatility has surged. A selloff in the world’s largest technology companies has reignited a debate on AI, and whether it is generating enough revenue or profit to justify the massive spending on infrastructure.
“You’re seeing in the markets right now a pullback, which I think is healthy — markets have run quite a bit this year,” he said on Bloomberg Television. “Markets are heavily focused on this AI dynamic: are we going to get the returns on capital invested that the market expects, and is that priced in? That’s a big debate.”
Read more here.
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Premarket trending tickers: Lowe’s, DoorDash, and MP Materials
Lowe’s (LOW) stock rose 4% before the bell after beating Wall Street estimates on quarterly sales. The retailer did, however, lower its full-year profit forecast amid growing economic uncertainty.
DoorDash (DASH) stock rose 3% before the bell following the news that Kroger will expand its partnerships with the online food ordering company.
MP Materials’ (MP) stock was up 4% in premarket trading on Thursday. The rare-earth company has seen some volatility over recent weeks due to export restrictions on rare earths from China. As part of the one-year trade truce, Beijing agreed to remove these restrictions; however, news has emerged that the details of that agreement have yet to be finalized between the US and China.
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Great bitcoin crash of 2025 has the crypto lagging bonds, gold
Bloomberg reports:
The asset once expected to “go to the moon” is struggling to keep pace with Treasurys. Bitcoin (BTC-USD) has fallen nearly 30% from its 2025 peak, lagging behind everything from tech stocks to T-bills. …
Gold (GC=F) — often dismissed by bitcoin believers as outdated — is easily outperforming the token, which the crypto faithful have dubbed digital gold. So are long-term bonds and the Nasdaq (^IXIC), in a year defined by falling interest rates and shrinking risk appetite.
The underperformance is even starker against benchmarks bitcoin was supposed to outclass. The MSCI Emerging Markets Index is up sharply this year, and even the US Utilities Index — a byword for low-volatility, low-growth stability — has outpaced bitcoin’s slide. …
Once pitched as everything from an inflation hedge to a growth engine and an uncorrelated store of value, the token has fallen short on every count of late. Volatile? Always. Reliable? Less and less.
That matters for professional investors. In diversified portfolios, Bitcoin has failed to offset losses from tariff-driven selloffs or amplify gains during rebounds. Nor has it acted independently when other markets turned volatile. For fund managers who saw crypto as a strategic addition, the disappointment goes beyond performance — it cuts to purpose.
Read more here.
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Constellation Energy rises after US loans $1B to restart nuclear reactor project
Constellation Energy (CEG) stock rose 3% before the bell on Wednesday after the US Department of Energy said it will loan $1 billion to help finance the restart of the nuclear power plant on Pennsylvania’s Three Mile Island that is under contract to supply power to data centers for tech giant Microsoft (MSFT).
The AP reports:
Read more here.
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Gold holds as tech stock drop pushes haven demand
Bloomberg reports:
Read more here.
