Stock futures inched higher on Monday, building on a modest rebound from Friday as Asian markets showed signs of recovery. Japan’s Nikkei and Taiwan’s benchmark each surged 2.5% early in the day, while South Korea’s KOSPI saw more modest gains. The MSCI’s Asia-Pacific index outside Japan climbed 0.8%, rebounding from a 4.6% loss last week driven by concerns over chip demand and data-center expansion.
Nvidia faced unexpected turbulence after disclosing an internal investigation into CEO Jensen Huang’s involvement in a potential Chinese spying case. The company’s shares dropped roughly 4% in overnight trading, falling to $180.30 from Friday’s close of $186.64. Huang admitted in an internal letter to being unfaithful to his wife of 40 years and expressed a desire to salvage his marriage.
Friday’s strong jobs report, which showed employers adding 165,000 positions in October and annual wage growth hitting 3.1%, has raised the likelihood of another Federal Reserve interest rate hike in December. Markets now assign nearly an 80% probability to such a move, which could further tighten borrowing costs and impact equity markets. The dollar remained supported, with its index near 102.2, while EURUSD traded around $1.1148 and USDJPY near ¥158.22.
Oil prices eased slightly to $97.49 a barrel after former President Trump suggested fresh attacks on Iran were unlikely amid ongoing peace talks. Gold opened near $4,100 an ounce, with the dollar and interest rates remaining key influences ahead of Tuesday’s US CPI release. Cryptocurrencies remained volatile, with Bitcoin down more than 2% near $73,700 and Ether roughly 5% lower at $2,200.