$100 oil futures set weekly gains despite Friday slide as 10-year yield hits $4.95
Oil prices retreated for the first time in five days but maintained a near-10% weekly gain above the $100 threshold. U.S. Treasury yields climbed to multiyear highs, with the 10-year note reaching 4.95%. Markets await Friday's consumer inflation data.
U.S. stock futures climbed early on Friday as traders anticipated upcoming inflation figures. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures rose 151 points, while the S&P 500 gained 0.19% and the Nasdaq 100 edged up less than 0.1%. In regular trading, all three major averages fell; the Dow dropped more than 300 points or 0.6%, the S&P 500 lost 0.6%, and the Nasdaq slipped 0.7% following four consecutive losing days for the indices. Asian markets also recorded losses, with South Korea's Kospi down 2.8% and Japan's Nikkei 225 falling 2.6%.
A key driver was crude oil. West Texas Intermediate futures jumped over $100 per barrel before settling at $99.23 on Friday. Brent crude finished the day at $103.78. Both benchmarks posted their highest settlement prices since May, driven by escalating conflict in the Middle East and fears regarding Red Sea shipping safety. The weekly gain for WTI reached 9.2% and 8.4% for Brent.
High oil prices pushed U.S. Treasury yields to new highs. The 10-year note yield topped 4.95%, the highest level since October 2023, though it settled flat at 4.9424% in early trading. Longer-dated yields held steady around 5.36%. The Treasury Department bought back approximately $5.2 billion in notes, a move that increased selling pressure on the bond market.
Traders are focusing on August's consumer price index data to be released later Friday, following a producer price index report that showed wholesale inflation rose 0.4%.
