U.S. stock futures rose on Thursday following Wednesday’s mixed close. This comes as President Donald Trump is in China addressing key issues such as trade, tariffs, Taiwan, and Iran with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
On Thursday, Xi stressed the significance of the Taiwan issue, terming it as the "most critical matter" in bilateral relations, the South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported, citing state media.
Meanwhile, the U.S. cleared Nvidia Corp.‘s (NASDAQ:NVDA) H200 AI chip sales to Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. ADR (NYSE:BABA), Tencent Holdings ADR (OTC:TCEHY), and 8 other firms, but Beijing has halted the deliveries.
The 10-year Treasury bond yielded 4.46%, and the two-year bond was at 3.97%. The CME Group's FedWatch tool‘s projections show markets pricing a 98.6% likelihood of the Federal Reserve leaving the current interest rates unchanged during June’s meeting.
| Index | Performance (+/-) |
| Dow Jones | 0.44% |
| S&P 500 | 0.24% |
| Nasdaq 100 | 0.35% |
| Russell 2000 | 0.03% |
The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) and Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (NASDAQ:QQQ), which track the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100, respectively, were higher in premarket on Thursday. The SPY was up 0.26% at $744.21, while the QQQ was higher by 0.39% to $717.47.
Stocks In Focus
Cisco Systems
- Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) soared 18.8% in premarket on Thursday after it announced better-than-expected third-quarter financial results and raised its FY26 guidance.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that CSCO maintains a strong price trend in the long, medium, short terms, with a poor value ranking.
Doximity
- Doximity Inc. (NYSE:DOCS) plunged 21.46% after reporting mixed fourth-quarter financial results and issuing weak first-quarter sales guidance.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that DOCS maintains a strong price trend in the short term but a weak trend in the long and medium terms, with a moderate growth score.
Grocery Outlet Holding
- Grocery Outlet Holding Corp. (NASDAQ:GO) gained 16.41% higher after the California-based discount grocer reported first-quarter results where earnings per share beat analyst estimates by 150%.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that GO maintains a strong price trend in the short term but a weak trend in the long and medium terms, with a poor growth score.
Precision Optics Corporation
- Precision Optics Corporation Inc. (NASDAQ:POCI) shares zoomed 16.96% after posting third-quarter revenue of $8.7 million, more than double the $4.2 million reported in the same period a year ago.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that POCI maintains a weak price trend in the short, medium, and long terms.
Applied Materials
- Applied Materials Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) was 2.01% higher as analysts expect it to report earnings of $2.66 per share on revenue of $7.68 billion, after the closing bell.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that AMAT maintains a strong price trend in the long, medium, and short terms, with a solid quality score.
Cues From Last Session
Communication services, consumer discretionary, and information technology stocks led the S&P 500 gains on Wednesday, while utilities and financials ended lower.
| Index | Performance (+/-) | Value |
| Dow Jones | -0.14% | 49,693.20 |
| S&P 500 | 0.58% | 7,444.25 |
| Nasdaq Composite | 1.20% | 26,402.34 |
| Russell 2000 | 0.039% | 2,843.93 |
Insights From Analysts
According to BlackRock's May 2026 commentary, the firm maintains a pro-risk stance, specifically overweighting U.S. equities despite elevated oil prices and interest rates.
BlackRock argues there is “no disconnect between record U.S. equities prices and elevated oil, commodities and yields,” as the market is simultaneously pricing in “AI-driven growth and the impact of the Middle East supply shock.”
However, the economy faces risks from sticky inflation and rising long-term yields. BlackRock notes that “the combined effect of higher inflation and rising capital demand could push yields high enough to weigh on valuations.”
Despite these pressures, the firm prefers equities over bonds, remaining underweight long-term U.S. Treasuries due to the compounding effect of energy price shocks on inflationary pressures.
Upcoming Economic Data
Here's what investors will be keeping an eye on Thursday.
- April’s U.S. retail sales and retail sales minus autos, initial jobless claims for the week ending May 9, and April’s import price index data will all be released by 8:30 a.m. ET.
- March’s business inventories data will be out by 10:00 a.m. Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack will give opening remarks at 1:00 p.m., New York Fed President John Williams will speak at 5:45 p.m., and Federal Reserve Governor Michael Barr will speak at 7:00 p.m. ET.
Commodities, Crypto, And Global Equity Markets
Crude oil futures were trading lower in the early New York session by 0.27% to hover around $101.29 per barrel.
Gold Spot US Dollar rose 0.37% to hover around $4,706.13 per ounce. Its last record high stood at $5,595.46 per ounce. The U.S. Dollar Index spot was 0.03% lower at the 98.4940 level.
Meanwhile, Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) was trading 1.35% lower at $79,894.40 per coin, as per the last 24 hours.
Asian markets closed mixed on Thursday, as Australia's ASX 200, India’s Nifty 50, South Korea's Kospi indices rose. While Japan's Nikkei 225, China’s CSI 300, and Hong Kong's Hang Seng indices fell. European markets were higher in early trade.
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