Stock futures advanced on Monday as oil prices experienced a significant decline and technology stocks showed signs of recovery. Investors are preparing for a week filled with earnings reports and the impending midterm elections. S&P 500 futures exhibited an increase of 0.4%, whereas Nasdaq-100 futures recorded a rise of 0.6%. Futures associated with the Dow Jones Industrial Average increased by 220 points, representing a 0.4% rise. Brent crude experienced a decline of 4.4%, settling at $108.37 per barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures experienced a decline of over 4%, settling at $99.31.
Micron, Sandisk, and Western Digital experienced a modest uptick in trading activity. Nvidia and Microsoft also experienced gains. The moves follow a week of declines for the major U.S. stock benchmarks, weighed down by selling pressure in the technology sector as investors maintained a critical eye on companies associated with the artificial intelligence expansion. Still, 3Fourteen Research’s Warren Pies isn’t too concerned. “I just don’t see anything broken with the AI trade fundamentally,” he said on Friday. “Technicals are another story.” The tech-heavy Nasdaq and the S&P 500 experienced a decline in October, driven by apprehensions surrounding AI expenditure, with the Nasdaq recording its most significant losses since March 2025.
The Dow, however, experienced an increase of nearly 2% as investors shifted their focus toward defensive sectors such as healthcare. “Rather than running for the hills amid heightened AI risks, investors are seeing plenty of return potential in other types of stocks,” Mike Dickson said in a note last week. Dickson added that while this week’s midterm elections “have some investors worried that changes in Washington, D.C., could impact the markets, it’s important to remember that stocks tend to stay steady regardless of which party gains control of Congress.”
The elections will occur on Tuesday, with expectations that Democrats will gain control of the House of Representatives, although the situation regarding Senate control remains ambiguous. Alongside the highly scrutinised monthly jobs report, a new series of earnings releases is set to occur this week. Apple, a member of the “Magnificent Seven,” is set to report after the bell on Monday. McDonald’s and Qualcomm are scheduled to announce their earnings later this week.
