Benzinga·2025-10-03 09:50Market Overview - U.S. stock futures advanced on Friday following record gains on Thursday, with major benchmark indices showing higher futures [1] - Wall Street remained optimistic due to AI-led market trends, despite most S&P 500 sectors declining [1] - The S&P 500 index reached a new record, with information technology and communication services sectors performing well [4] Economic Indicators - The 10-year Treasury bond yielded 4.09%, while the two-year bond was at 3.55% [2] - Markets are pricing a 97.8% likelihood of the Federal Reserve cutting interest rates in its October meeting [2] Sector Performance - The Dow Jones index rose 79 points (0.17%) to 46,519.72, while the S&P 500 increased by 0.062% to 6,715.35 [6][7] - The Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.39% to 22,844.05, and the Russell 2000 gained 0.66% to 2,458.49 [6][7] - Sectors with the biggest losses included energy, consumer discretionary, and real estate, while materials and information technology stocks helped U.S. stocks settle higher [4] Company Highlights - Nvidia Corp. reached a market capitalization of $4.6 trillion, rising around 1% [5] - Advanced Micro Devices Inc. surged 3.5% after reports suggested Intel may add AMD as a foundry customer [5] - Intel shares advanced 2.2%, on track for their highest close since April 2024 [5] Investor Behavior - Institutional investors sold $3.6 billion in stocks, marking their largest weekly sell-off since June, while hedge funds offloaded $1.3 billion [12][13] - Retail investors became net buyers for the first time in four weeks, purchasing a total of $200 million in equities [14] Global Market Trends - Asian markets closed higher, with Japan's Nikkei 225, Australia's ASX 200, South Korea's Kospi, China's CSI 300, and India's S&P BSE Sensex indices rising [19] - European markets also showed positive trends in early trade [19] Notable Stock Movements - Actelis Networks Inc. jumped 42.95% after announcing a new contract valued at approximately 5.45% of its market capitalization [17] - XCel Brands Inc. surged 47.98% following a settlement agreement with the SEC [17] - Rumble Inc. shares climbed 12.04% due to a partnership announcement [17]