US shares were poised to open higher with the S&P 500 inching closer to a fresh all-time high. When crash? If crash?

🏆 Wall Street Keeps Climbing

  • US stock futures edged higher Thursday after another winning session. Dow futures added about 50 points, while S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures gained 0.1%, suggesting traders were ready for more gains.
  • The S&P 500 finished Wednesday at 7,572, sitting fewer than 60 points below its all-time high. The eternal market question remains: When crash? If crash at all? For now, momentum is still doing the talking.
  • Apple, Alphabet and Amazon each climbed more than 3%, offsetting weakness in chipmakers. It wasn't a perfect rally, but the mega-cap heavyweights were more than happy (and capable) to carry the market uphill.

🌡️ Cool Inflation, Warm Mood

  • A softer-than-expected producer price index (PPI) added to hopes that inflation is cooling. The PPI measures prices businesses pay before goods reach consumers, making it an early clue about future inflation trends.
  • Lower Treasury yields also boosted sentiment. Bond yields and stock valuations often move in opposite directions, so falling yields tend to make fast-growing companies (especially tech) look more attractive.
  • Strong earnings from major banks reinforced the narrative that corporate America is still delivering healthy profits, even as inflation cools. Investors now turn to retail sales, jobless claims, UnitedHealth and Netflix for the next batch of market-moving clues.

🌏 Asia Can't Catch a Break

  • While Wall Street kept smiling, Asia had another rough morning. South Korea's Kospi slid about 6.4%, briefly triggering another trading halt after heavyweight chipmakers SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics dropped 11% and 8%, respectively.
  • The weakness spilled over from US semiconductor stocks after fell 9% overnight alongside names like Micron and Intel.
  • Japan's Nikkei 225 lost 2.8%, while policy headlines barely moved markets. South Korea delivered its first rate hike since 2023, and Japan again warned it could intervene to support the yen. What followed was a collective shrug from traders.