Stock futures rose modestly Thursday night as Wall Street appeared to be building a strong close in afternoon trading.
Futures contracts linked to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were up about 34 points or 0.1%. Those for the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq 100 added 0.2% and 0.3%, respectively.
The move in futures comes after the stocks rebounded during afternoon trading on Thursday, with the Dow swinging more than 500 points as cyclical trades picked up steam. The strong close broke a recent trend of poor results on Wall Street and narrowed the market’s losses so far. The Dow and S&P 500 are down less than 0.1% this week, while the Nasdaq Composite is 1.8% in the red.
“If you are positioned as we are, namely for a cyclical recovery and being considered in the value sectors, you certainly cannot drive a victory lap here. But it is nice to see some of the trends that have been were underway seem to reaffirm themselves, ”Jason Trennert, CEO of Strategas Research Partners, said on CNBC’s“ Closing Bell ”.
Futures were boosted by bank stocks, which rose after the Fed announced that banks could resume buybacks and increase dividends from the end of June. The central bank originally said it would lift the pandemic-era restrictions in the first quarter, but even the delayed move gives investors more clarity.
“The banking system remains a source of strength and the return to our normal framework after this year’s stress test will maintain that strength,” Randal Quarles, vice chair for supervision, said in a statement.
Shares of JPMorgan and Citigroup were up slightly during extended trading, along with other major banks.
In terms of economic data, investors will look to inflation opportunities again Friday, with reports on personal income and consumption expenditures coming in February.