ICMarket

Thursday 29th Oct 2026: U.S. Futures Fall as Microsoft, Alphabet Earnings Put AI Trade in Focus

Global Markets:

●         Asian Stock Markets : Nikkei up 0.21%, Shanghai Composite down 0.93% Hang Seng down 0.00% ASX up 0.43%

●        Commodities : Gold at $4,055.15 (0.09%) Silver at $53.283 (-0.73%), Brent Oil at 110.25 (-1.25%), WTI Oil at 101.43 (-1.31%)

●        Rates : US 10-year yield at 4.990, UK 10-year yield at 5.3252, Germany 10-year yield at 3.3827

News & Data:

●        (CAD) Overnight Rate   2.50% to 2.50%  expected

Markets Update:

U.S. equity futures declined late Wednesday as investors assessed quarterly earnings from major technology companies. Nasdaq-100 futures fell 1.2%, while S&P 500 futures lost 0.5%.

Asian markets traded mixed on Thursday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.49%, while South Korea’s Kospi dropped 2.44%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.24%, China’s CSI 300 fell 0.64%, and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 advanced 0.34%.

In after-hours trading, Microsoft shares climbed 3% after its Azure cloud business helped the company beat first-quarter fiscal 2027 earnings and revenue expectations. Conversely, Alphabet plunged 9% after missing third-quarter earnings and revenue estimates and reporting negative free cash flow of $9.07 billion. Alphabet maintained its full-year capital expenditure forecast of $195 billion to $205 billion.

Investors remain focused on artificial intelligence-related spending and semiconductor demand. On Wednesday, the S&P 500 advanced for a third consecutive session, supported by Micron Technology’s nearly 6% gain and Broadcom’s increase of more than 2%. The Nasdaq Composite added 0.3%.

The Federal Reserve held interest rates steady at 3.75%-4%, citing elevated inflation and the need for additional economic information before making further policy decisions.

Markets will now focus on Thursday’s September PCE inflation report, third-quarter GDP figures and weekly jobless claims. Earnings from Caterpillar, Eli Lilly, Amazon and Intel will also attract investor attention.

 Upcoming Events:

●       12:30 PM    GMT   –   USD  Advance GDP Price Index q/q

●       1:15 PM    GMT   –   EUR  Main Refinancing Rate