US Stock Market: Futures Edge Higher Amid Key Economic Data and Corporate Headlines

Market Overview - U.S. equity markets are showing a cautiously optimistic start with S&P 500 futures up 0.28%, Nasdaq 100 futures up 0.55%, and Dow Jones Industrial Average futures up 0.21% [2] - The premarket activity follows a mixed close on October 7, where some indexes retreated while others, like the S&P 500 and Nasdaq, reached record levels [2] Economic Events - The FOMC Meeting Minutes will be released at 3:00 PM ET, providing insights into the Federal Reserve's policy discussions and future monetary policy outlook [4] - The EIA Crude Oil Inventories report will be released at 10:30 AM ET, which is crucial for the energy sector [5] - Other economic indicators include Construction Spending with a forecast of -0.1% and a 10-Year Note Auction at 1:00 PM ET [5] Corporate News - ABB Ltd is divesting its Robotics division to SoftBank for an enterprise value of $5.375 billion, focusing on core operations [6] - BMW's shares declined approximately 3% after cutting its 2025 earnings forecast due to changed U.S. tariff assumptions and weaker growth in China [6] - Confluent Inc. shares surged around 20% as it explores a potential sale following acquisition interest [6] - bioAffinity Technologies saw a premarket surge of over 20% after a strong third-quarter sales update for its lung cancer diagnostic test [6] - Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) gained about 3.7% in premarket trading, driven by reports of a major AI chip partnership with OpenAI [6] Notable Stock Movements - Tesla shares declined 0.7% in premarket trading ahead of an event for a more affordable Model Y SUV [10] - IBM shares jumped 4% following a partnership announcement with AI research company Anthropic [10] - Oracle faced pressure due to a sell-off after reporting weaker-than-expected cloud margin results [10] - Microsoft saw a 0.1% gain, while Nvidia was down 0.27%, Apple down 0.4%, and Alphabet up 0.3% in premarket trading [10]