US futures                                         

Dow futures 0.36%, S&P futures 0.03%  & Nasdaq futures -0.1%

In Europe                                                                        

FTSE -0.64% & DAX -1.22%

• Stocks recover as Trump eases China trade concerns
• Regional banks recover as fears of credit risk calm
• Fed is in the blackout period & US data is scarce
• Oil falls for a third straight week

US-China trade worries & regional bank concerns ease

 U.S. Stocks are recovering from earlier losses after President Trump confirmed that his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping was still on, easing worries about escalating trade tensions between the two largest economies.

Investors have been monitoring developments between Washington and Beijing following the escalation of trade war rhetoric on Friday and throughout the week.

As well as easing US-China trade tensions, traders are also shaking off credit concerns, which sparked a massive sell-off in regional banks on Thursday. The market is betting that any bad credits were one-offs rather than the start of a new trend. Zion and the Western Alliance fell by double digits yesterday. Better-than-expected earnings from Fifth Third Bancorp also calmed those concerns.

Meanwhile, the US economic calendar remains quiet owing to the ongoing U.S. government lockdown, marking the 16th straight day with no sign of an agreement soon, meaning a prolonged shutdown is looking likely. Fed speakers are also in a blackout. This means that data and commentary supporting further rate cuts will be in short supply until the FOMC meeting on October 29.

Corporate news

Regional banks are rising after yesterday's sharp decline. Zion and Western Alliance bounced higher as Moody’s said that the banking system's private credit and markets are sound despite worries over bad loans.

Oracle is falling 2.4% giving back a chunk of its gains from Thursday when it confirmed a cloud computing deal with Meta.

Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly, the pharmaceutical stocks, are falling around 4% after Trump suggested that obesity drug costs could be significantly reduced. The White House had not negotiated the price of these GLP-1 medications.

Dow Jones forecast – technical analysis.

The Dow Jones broke below the rising trendline dating back to late April. The price ran into support at 45200 and has recovered back above the 50 SMA. The long lower wick suggests there was little selling demand at the lower levels. Buyers will look to extend the recovery above 46,700, the rising trendline to bring 47,000 and fresh record highs. Support can be seen at 45,200, the weekly low. Below here, and 45000 sellers could look towards 44,500.

FX markets – USD rises, EUR/USD falls

The U.S. Dollar is rising, reversing earlier losses. However, the dollar is still on track to fall steeply across the week, as the mood recovers. U.S. data and Fed speakers are in short supply owing to the US government shutdown and the Fed blackout.

EUR/USD is falling on Friday on U.S. dollar strength, but is also set to rise 0.4% across the week. On the data front, eurozone inflation rose 2.2% in September, up from 2% in August, in line with the preliminary reading. The ECB has few reasons to cut interest rates further.

The GBP/USD is falling amid a stronger U.S. dollar. The pound is still on track to gain 0.4% across the week after mixed data showed the UK economy grew 0.1% in August, but the unemployment rate rose to 4.8% in a sign of ongoing weakening in the labour market. Attention is turning to a busy economic calendar next week with UK inflation data and retail sales.

Oil falls for a third straight week.

Oil prices have steadied at 57.50 after four days of losses. Oil is on track to fall 2.5% across the week, marking the third straight weekly decline.

Oil has been under pressure throughout the week due to concerns over a supply glut and worries over the demand outlook.

Trump and Putin agreed to another summit on the war in Ukraine to be held over the coming weeks. The surprise development could mean that Trump is prepared to take a softer stance on Russia, which could push prices lower.

Meanwhile, trade tensions between the US and China added concerns around economic slowdown and lower energy demand. However, optimism surrounding upcoming talks has helped to stem the selloff.

This comes as the International Energy Agency's outlook points to a growing supply glut in 2026. Furthermore, inventories rose by 3.5 million barrels last week, well ahead of the 288,000 increase forecast.