Stock futures inch higher as S&P 500 and Nasdaq face worst month in 2023: Live updates

European markets opened higher on Friday, after ending a five-day losing streak in the previous session.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 index was up by 0.4%, with most sectors trading in positive territory. Household goods were 1.3% higher, followed by tech stocks, which were up 1.2%. Oil and gas bucked the trend with a 0.3% downturn.

— Hannah Ward-Glenton

Inflation in the Japanese capital grew at the slowest rate in a year, coming in at 2.8% for September compared to the 2.9% in August. The last time the inflation rate was this low was in September 2022.

The core inflation rate, which strips out prices of fresh food, stood at 2.5%, lower than the 2.6% expected by economists in a Reuters poll and also lower than August’s 2.8%.

Tokyo’s inflation rate is seen as a leading indicator of nationwide inflation trends.

— Lim Hui Jie

Japan’s factory output came in flat in August compared to July, defying expectations for a 0.8% fall forecast by economists polled by Reuters.

Year on year, industrial output slid for a third straight month, falling 3.7%.

Separately, retail sales rose 7% year on year, higher than expectations of 6.6% and at the same rate compared with July’s revised figure of 7%

Japan’s unemployment rate also remained unchanged, at 2.7% in August.

— Lim Hui Jie

Stocks are on a losing streak. Each of the three indexes are on pace to notch their second negative monthly performance in a row for the first time since September 2022. 

Here’s how they are performing this month: 

• The tech-heavy Nasdaq is down 5.9% so far in September, and is on pace for its worst monthly performance since Dec. 2022 when it fell 8.73%. 
• The S&P 500 is trading lower by 4.6% this month, and is on pace for its worst monthly performance since Dec. 2022, when it dropped 5.9%. 
• The Dow is down about 3% this month, and is on pace for its worst monthly performance since May, when it fell roughly 3.5%.

— Pia Singh, Chris Hayes

Inflationary pressures will likely be higher in the future than has been true in the past 20 years, meaning that “higher real interest rates are necessary in such an environment to keep inflation at target,” according to Ben Inker and John Pease of Grantham, Mayo, Van Otterloo in Boston in a quarterly shareholder letter.

The problem for stocks is, “higher real interest rates put pressure on both expensive and leveraged assets,” the authors said. “Investors should prepare for a recession not by owning less risk, but by owning risk where they are well-compensated for it.”

One problem area Inker and Pease highlighted is the increased interest burden on corporate borrowers, as shown by public financials of Business Development Corporations. “Ares Capital Corporation (ARES) – the largest listed BDC – has seen its portfolio’s interest increase from below 30% of EBITDA in Q2 of 2021 to over 60% in Q2 of 2023.The yields available from lending to that portfolio might be exciting, but that excitement seems a bit too large considering the concentrated bet that defaults are not around the corner.”

— Scott Schnipper

Check out the companies making headlines in extended trading:

• Vail Resorts — The ski resort chain’s shares slid 1.8% following a disappointing quarterly report. Vail Resorts posted a loss of $3.35 per share on $270 million in revenue for the fourth fiscal quarter. Analysts surveyed by LSEG anticipated $3.24 lost per share and $283 million in revenue. The company also said its North American summer operations performed worse than expected.
• Nike — Shares of the athletic retailer rose 1.8% after it posted an earnings beat in the first quarter. Nike reported 94 cents earnings per share, while analysts polled by LSEG had forecast 75 cents per share. Meanwhile, revenue fell below estimates. Revenue came in at $12.94 billion in the first quarter, compared to Wall Street’s estimates of $12.98 billion, according to LSEG.
• Blackberry — The cybersecurity company’s shares added 1.5% in after-hours trading Thursday after Blackberry posted a loss of 4 cents per share, while analysts surveyed by FactSet expected a loss of 7 cents per share for the second quarter. The company’s revenue of $132 million fell short of analysts’ anticipated revenue of $134.3 million, according to FactSet.

— Hakyung Kim, Pia Singh, Alex Harring