Nasdaq-100-linked futures were higher Thursday, driven by big gains in Facebook-parent MetaPlatform.
Nasdaq-100 futures gained 1.3%. S&P 500 futures jumped 0.4 percent and futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were down 134 points, or 0.4 percent.
Meta rose more than 19 percent in premarket trading after beating fourth-quarter earnings and announcing a $40 billion share buyback. That helped investors see past losses in the trading segment that dominates the meta’s opposite.
The moves follow a positive day for all three major indices. The S&P 500 rose 1.05% on Wednesday, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 2%. Meanwhile, the Dow managed a narrow 0.02% gain after shedding more than 500 points on the day.
Wednesday’s gains came after the Federal Reserve announced a 0.25 percent interest rate hike. That marked a step back from the 0.5 percent increase at the December meeting, which bolstered investors’ optimism that inflation was slowing enough for the central bank to recognize. But the central bank gave no hint of an impending pause in rate hikes.
“Traders think the Fed is behind the curve and inflation risks are receding quickly,” said Jamie Dutta, market analyst at Vantage. “The Fed is open to changing its mind and should do so if the economy slows.”
Investors will be watching Thursday for household names including earnings reports Apple, Alphabet, Amazon, Ford Motor And Starbucks. They also want information on unemployment claims, productivity, labor costs and factory orders.