(Editor’s note: The future prices of benchmark tracking ETFs and the headline were updated in the story.)
U.S. stock futures fell on Friday following Thursday’s sharp sell-off. Futures of the major benchmark indices were lower.
On Thursday, President Donald Trump pushed the deadline for Iran to finalize a deal back by 10 days to April 6. This move halted planned strikes against Iranian energy infrastructure as he asserted that negotiations were progressing "very well."
Tehran, however, reportedly rejected a 15-point U.S. proposal conveyed through Pakistan, with a senior Iranian official telling Reuters that senior officials and a representative of the supreme leader found it served only American and Israeli interests.
Meanwhile, the 10-year Treasury bond yielded 4.45%, and the two-year bond was at 4.00%. The CME Group's FedWatch tool’s projections show markets pricing a 93.8% likelihood of the Federal Reserve leaving the current interest rates unchanged in its April meeting.
| Index | Performance (+/-) |
| Dow Jones | -0.16% |
| S&P 500 | -0.14% |
| Nasdaq 100 | -0.21% |
| Russell 2000 | -0.33% |
The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) and Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (NASDAQ:QQQ), which track the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100, respectively, were lower in premarket on Friday. The SPY was down 0.37% at $642.70, while the QQQ declined 0.57% to $570.52.
Stocks In Focus
Unity Software
- Unity Software Inc. (NYSE:U) surged 15.24% in premarket on Friday after it released strong preliminary results for the first quarter. The company sees first-quarter revenue in the range of $505 million to $508 million versus prior guidance of $480 million to $490 million.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that U maintains a weak price trend over the long, short, and medium terms.
Oracle
- Oracle Corp. (NYSE:ORCL) was down 0.15% despite announcing a significant expansion of its Nashville footprint, signing a lease for 116,000 square feet in the Neuhoff District, adding to its ongoing development in the area. Simultaneously, AI solutions company Veritone Inc. (NASDAQ:VERI), which dropped 7.97%, announced a multi-year agreement to migrate its AI solutions to Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI).
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that ORCL maintains a weak trend in the long, short, and medium terms, with a poor value ranking.
SoFi Technologies
- SoFi Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:SOFI) was down 0.63% after it announced the expansion of its Loan Platform Business (LPB), committing over $3.6 billion in personal loan delivery across three new partnerships.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that SOFI maintains a weak price trend over the short, medium, and long terms, with a solid growth score.
Datacentrex
- Datacentrex Inc. (NASDAQ:DTCX) plunged 30.10% after it announced the pricing of a $20.17 million public offering at $2.00 per share, a notable discount to its recent trading price.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that DTCX maintains a strong trend in the short, long, and medium terms.
Southland Holdings
- Southland Holdings Inc. (NYSE:SLND) slumped 34.16% following the release of its fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 financial results. The quarter saw a steep drop in fourth-quarter 2025 revenue to $104.0 million from $267.3 million a year ago, alongside a gross loss of $193.4 million.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that SLND maintains a weak price trend in the medium and long terms but a strong trend in the short term.
Cues From Last Session
Consumer discretionary, information technology, and industrial sectors led the S&P 500 lower on Thursday, while energy, utilities, and real estate sectors were the only ones to finish in green.
| Index | Performance (+/-) | Value |
| Dow Jones | -1.01% | 45,960.11 |
| S&P 500 | -1.74% | 6,477.16 |
| Nasdaq Composite | -2.38% | 21,408.08 |
| Russell 2000 | -1.70% | 2,493.32 |
Insights From Analysts
According to Senior Global Market Strategist Scott Wren, the U.S. economy is currently navigating “shorter-term inflationary effects” driven by geopolitical conflict.
Wren notes that while the S&P 500 Index recently dipped 1.9%, there are signs of stabilization as warring parties step back from “serious escalations” that threatened to spike energy prices.
The economic impact remains “widespread across many segments,” primarily through surging oil prices that increase costs for both consumers at the pump and businesses relying on trucking. Wren observes that because “America relies heavily on truckers,” rising diesel surcharges are likely to be passed on to U.S. consumers.
Despite this volatility, Wren believes political constraints will “ultimately restrain the duration of the war,” as all sides seek to avoid “extensive structural damage to the region’s main income source.” For the stock market, he recommends a tactical shift:
- Rebalancing: Move from a heavy energy-related exposure back to a “neutral weighting.”
- Sector Rotation: Redirect funds into “U.S. Large Cap Equities” and favored sectors like Financials, Industrials, and Utilities.
Upcoming Economic Data
Here's what investors will be keeping an eye on Friday.
- The final March consumer sentiment reading will be released by 10:00 a.m. ET.
Commodities, Crypto, And Global Equity Markets
Crude oil futures were trading higher in the early New York session by 1.45% to hover around $95.85 per barrel.
Gold Spot US Dollar fell 1.25% to hover around $4,433.57 per ounce. Its last record high stood at $5,595.46 per ounce. The U.S. Dollar Index spot was 0.11% higher at the 100.0070 level.
Meanwhile, Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) was trading 2.27% lower at $68,231.67 per coin, as per the last 24 hours.
Asian markets closed lower on Friday, except China’s CSI 300 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng indices. India’s Nifty 50, South Korea's Kospi, Japan's Nikkei 225, and Australia's ASX 200 indices fell. European markets were also lower in early trade.
Photo courtesy: M. Knijnenburg on Shutterstock.com
Login to comment