US stock futures dived on Thursday as investors evaluated the Federal Reserve’s latest rate cut, which helped fuel a late-day rally on Wall Street.
Contracts on the S&P 500 (ES=F) and the Nasdaq 100 (NQ=F) tumbled 0.8% and 1.2%, respectively. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures (YM=F), which include fewer tech names, saw a more moderate fall, down 0.4%.
Software giant Oracle’s (ORCL) stock plunged more than 10% after its quarterly revenue fell short of expectations. That raised fresh concerns about demand for its cloud infrastructure products, as investors watched for signals of a wider AI bubble. Oracle’s growing debt and reliance on OpenAI (OPAI.PVT) to hit its lofty revenue targets have proved a worry for Wall Street.
The broader market finished higher on Wednesday after a split Fed voted to cut interest rates for the third time this year, lowering the federal funds target range to 3.5%–3.75%. Policymakers signaled a more gradual path of easing in the months ahead, but Chair Jerome Powell hinted that a rate hike would be off the table for January, while broadly talking up the US economy’s strength.
Powell said the Fed is “well positioned to wait and see” how economic conditions evolve, adding that tariffs imposed under President Trump have contributed to inflation pressures.
The puts the spotlight on a weekly update on jobless claims on Thursday, while delayed readings on wholesale inventories and trade sales could draw more scrutiny than usual.
Meanwhile, earnings reports continue with Broadcom (AVGO), Costco (COST) and Lululemon (LULU) all set to release results, rounding out an unpredictable season for AI and retail traders.
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