U.S. Futures Edge Higher; Biden, Fed Speakers and Big Tech in Focus By

© Reuters.

By Peter Nurse 

Fxgecko.com -- U.S. stocks are seen opening marginally higher Friday, consolidating after the previous session’s sharp gains as U.S. President Joe Biden continues his trip to Europe aimed at cementing Western unity against Russia.

At 7 AM ET (1100 GMT), the Dow Futures contract was up 45 points, or 0.1%, S&P 500 Futures traded 7 points, or 0.2%, higher and Nasdaq 100 Futures climbed 20 points, or 0.1%.

The three main averages on Wall Street closed higher Thursday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbing over 350 points, or 1%, the S&P 500 rising 1.4% and the Nasdaq Composite gaining 1.9%. The latter two indices are on course for their second consecutive winning week, while the Dow is largely flat week to date.

Biden travels to Poland later Friday, seeking to give thanks to a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization that has taken in millions of Ukrainian refugees. 

This follows meetings in Brussels on Thursday with NATO and European allies, where the president called for Russia to be removed from the G20 group of countries, while agreeing to send more aid to Ukraine and levying more sanctions on Moscow. 

Back in the U.S., Federal Reserve officials Tom Barkin and John Williams are due to speak later in the session and are expected to continue the hawkish guidance after the U.S. central bank raised the benchmark lending rate by a quarter point at its meeting last week, the first increase since December 2018.

Chicago Fed President Charles Evans said Thursday that the central bank needs to raise rates this year and next to tame inflation before it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. 

The U.S. economic data slate Friday includes a new consumer sentiment reading from March as well as pending home sales data from February.

In the corporate sector, the Big Tech stocks are likely to be in the spotlight Friday after EU antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager said on Friday that tough new rules targeting these tech giants are expected to come into force in October.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) particularly will be in focus after a Bloomberg report saying that it is looking at launching subscription plans for its hardware.

Oil prices weakened Friday after the European Union and United States unveiled a deal to supply Europe with more U.S. liquefied natural gas, as leaders of the major European countries attempt to curb their reliance on Russia for their energy needs.

Additionally, the United States and its allies were said to be discussing a possible further coordinated release of oil from storage.

By 7 AM ET, U.S. crude futures traded 1.6% lower at $110.56 a barrel, while the Brent contract fell 1.2% to $117.66. Both contracts were still on course for their first weekly gains in three weeks, with Brent around 10% higher and WTI up 7%.

Additionally, gold futures fell 0.6% to $1,951.10/oz, while EUR/USD traded 0.2% higher at 1.1016.

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