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Investing.com – U.S. stock futures pointed to a mixed open on Wall Street after shares rose in the previous session. Coinbase (NASDAQ:) reports better-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings thanks to a surge in crypto exchange activity following the approval of exchange-traded funds that track the spot price of. Meanwhile, Jeff Bezos is selling another $2 billion worth of Amazon (NASDAQ:) stock Nike (NYSE:) reportedly plans to lay off 2% of its workforce.
1. Futures mixed
US stock futures moved on both sides of the flatline on Friday.
As of 4:06 a.m. ET (09:06 GMT), the contract was down 25 points, or 0.1%, up 7 points, or 0.1%, and had gained 97 points, or 0.5%.
Wall Street's major averages rose in the previous session, with investors assessing the prospect of imminent interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve following mixed economic data. U.S. retail sales fell in January, leading to a decline in Treasury yields, suggesting some traders viewed the report as a sign that the Fed may cut interest rates sooner than expected. However, the decline in yields was short-lived as weekly jobless claims came in lower than expected and U.S. factory output fell unexpectedly last month.
At Thursday's close, the benchmark was up 0.6%, the tech group was up 0.3% and the blue chip was up 0.9%.
On Friday, retailers will be on the lookout for a consumer sentiment survey from the University of Michigan. Thomas Barkin, president of the Richmond Fed, Michael Barr, vice chair of the Fed for supervision, and Mary Daly, president of the San Francisco Fed, will also give speeches.
2. Coinbase rises premarket on earnings beat
Coinbase posted a fourth-quarter profit that beat Wall Street estimates as approval of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds boosted activity on the crypto exchange platform.
Coinbase shares rose sharply in pre-market US dealmaking.
According to LSEG data cited by Reuters, Coinbase reported earnings per diluted share of $1.04 in the three months ended Dec. 31, beating expectations for a loss of $0.01 per share. Trading volume increased to $154 billion from $145 billion in the same period last year.
“We believe the increases are due to a variety of factors, most notably the excitement surrounding the approval of Bitcoin spot ETFs and general expectations for improving macroeconomic conditions in 2024, largely reflecting in capital markets. Risk-on' activity contributed,” the company said in a statement statement.
Elsewhere, DoorDash (NASDAQ:) shares fell premarket after the delivery company reported a wider-than-expected fourth-quarter loss, partly due to increased labor costs, while semiconductor equipment maker Applied Materials (NASDAQ:) reported a positive second-quarter loss Earnings recorded Revenue outlook is driven by strong demand for advanced artificial intelligence chips.
3. Bezos sells $2 billion worth of Amazon stock for the third time this month
Billionaire Jeff Bezos sold another $2 billion worth of Amazon shares, bringing the total value of the shares he dumped in February to about $6 billion.
According to a regulatory filing, Amazon's current chairman and former CEO sold 12 million shares of the e-commerce giant on Tuesday and Wednesday, valued at about $2 billion.
Amazon previously announced that Bezos planned to sell 50 million shares worth more than $8 billion next year.
4. Nike to cut 2% of its workforce – reports
Nike reportedly plans to lay off about 2% of its workforce, or more than 1,600 employees, as part of a broader cost-cutting effort.
According to the Wall Street Journal, which first reported the news, the layoffs are expected to begin on Friday. A second round will be completed by the end of the quarter, the Journal added, citing an internal memo.
Oregon-based Nike had about 83,700 employees as of May 31, company filings show. The WSJ noted that the layoffs are not expected to impact employees in the clothing group's stores or distribution centers.
Nike had previously indicated it would seek $2 billion in spending savings over the next three years to offset weaker expected profits tied to a slowdown in consumer spending on non-essential items.
5. Oil prices are falling
Oil prices fell in early European trading on Friday, weighed down by ongoing concerns about weakening demand.
Still, crude oil prices were set for modest weekly gains after seeing volatile swings throughout the week. A weaker dollar gave oil prices some relief after the greenback fell sharply from three-month highs on weak U.S. retail sales.
US Producer Price Index inflation numbers, due later today, are now in focus for further guidance on the future path of interest rates. Stronger-than-expected consumer inflation data released earlier in the week led markets to largely price in the prospect of impending interest rate cuts by the Fed.
April crude fell 0.5% to $82.48 a barrel, while it fell 0.4% to $77.25 a barrel by 4:05 a.m. ET (09:05 GMT). Both contracts rose about 1% this week.
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