US pre-open: Stocks seen muted after record session
US stocks looked set for a muted open on Friday following a record session the day before on the back of strength in the technology sector and easing worries about the US-China trade conflict.
At 1220 BST, Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500 and Nasdaq futures were flat, with investors likely to pause for breath after both the Dow and the S&P rose to fresh highs on Thursday.
Sentiment on Thursday was underpinned by some solid economic data, as jobless claims and the Philadelphia Fed's manufacturing index came in better than expected, while an index of leading economic indicators signalled that the US economic could grow by 3% in the second half of this year.
CMC Markets analyst David Madden said: "The Dow Jones and S&P 500 hit all-time highs yesterday as fears surrounding the US-China trade standoff subsided. The tariffs that were announced by both sides during the week were deemed to be not as harsh as originally suspected. The US in particular showed restraint, but that was partially so the Trump administration would have more ammunition should they feel it is required down the line. Now that the latest series of tariffs are out of the way, investors fell back into their bullish routine."
In corporate news, Micron Technology was down nearly 6% in pre-market trade after its quarterly results late on Thursday were solid but the company’s outlook was weaker-than-expected.
Elsewhere, Wells Fargo was likely to be in focus after announcing late on Thursday that it could cut jobs as part of its "ongoing transformation".
Adobe Systems ticked up in pre-market trade as it announced an agreement to buy software maker Marketo for $4.8bn, while Medtronic was likely to be in focus after agreeing to buy Mazor Robotics for $1.64bn.
Shares in Comcast and Walt Disney could be active ahead of an auction for London-listed broadcaster Sky, the outcome of which will be announced on Saturday.
On the data front, Markit's manufacturing, services and composite PMIs for September are due at 1445 BST.