08:25 AM EDT, 10/11/2024 (MT Newswires) -- The broad market exchange-traded fund SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust ( SPY ) was down 0.02% and the actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) was 0.2% lower in Friday's premarket activity as investors gear up for the busy earnings season.

US stock futures were mixed, with S&P 500 Index futures down 0.1%, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures advancing 0.1%, and Nasdaq futures retreating 0.3% before the start of regular trading.

September's producer price index will be released at 8.30 am ET.

The University of Michigan consumer sentiment report posts at 10 am ET, and the Baker Hughes oil-and-gas rig count at 1 pm ET.

Federal Reserve Chicago President Austan Goolsbee speaks at 9:45 am ET, Dallas Fed President Lorie Logan at 10:45 am ET, and Governor Michelle Bowman at 1:10 pm ET.

In premarket activity, bitcoin was up by 2.4% and the cryptocurrency fund ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO) was 2.3% higher.

Power Play:

Technology

Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLK ) advanced 0.02%. The iShares US Technology ETF ( IYW ) , and the iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF ( IGM ) were inactive. Among semiconductor ETFs, SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF ( XSD ) was inactive, while the iShares Semiconductor ETF ( SOXX ) increased marginally by 0.01%.

Aehr Test Systems ( AEHR ) shares were up more than 13% in premarket activity Friday after the company reported overnight a smaller-than-expected decline in fiscal Q1 earnings and revenue based on estimates from two analysts in a Capital IQ survey.

Winners and Losers:

Industrial

Industrial Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLI ) retreated 0.2% while the Vanguard Industrials Index Fund ( VIS ) and the iShares US Industrials ETF ( IYJ ) were inactive.

Fastenal ( FAST ) stock gained 3.3% before the opening bell after the company reported higher Q3 net sales.

Consumer

The Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLP ) was flat, while the Vanguard Consumer Staples Fund (VDC) was up 0.03%. The iShares US Consumer Staples ETF ( IYK ) was inactive, and the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLY ) lost 0.9%. The VanEck Retail ETF ( RTH ) and the SPDR S&P Retail ETF ( XRT ) were inactive.

Stellantis ( STLA ) stock was down nearly 3% pre-bell after the company named Doug Ostermann its chief financial officer and said that Chief Executive Carlos Tavares will retire in early 2026.

Health Care

The Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLV ) was flat. The Vanguard Health Care Index Fund ( VHT ) , the iShares US Healthcare ETF ( IYH ) , and the iShares Biotechnology ETF ( IBB ) were inactive.

Immatics ( IMTX ) stock was up 2.3% premarket after the company said late Thursday it priced its public offering of about 16.3 million ordinary shares at $9.25 per share for gross proceeds of about $150 million.

Financial

Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLF ) gained 0.6%. Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares ( FAS ) was up 1.6%, while its bearish counterpart Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares ( FAZ ) was 1.4% lower.

BlackRock (BLK) shares were up 1.5% pre-bell Friday after the company reported higher Q3 financial results that also exceeded analyst expectations.

Energy

The iShares US Energy ETF ( IYE ) was inactive, while the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLE ) was down by 0.2%.

W&T Offshore ( WTI ) was up 1.3% before Friday's opening bell after the company filed a new Form S-3 registration statement with the US Securities and Exchange Commission to sell up to $500 million in mixed securities, in one or more offerings.

Commodities

Front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil decreased 0.7% to $75.30 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Natural gas was up 0.9% at $2.70 per 1 million British Thermal Units. United States Oil Fund ( USO ) retreated 0.9%, while the United States Natural Gas Fund ( UNG ) advanced 0.7%.

Gold futures for December advanced 0.7% to $2,657.40 an ounce on the Comex, while silver futures gained 0.5% to reach $31.38 an ounce. SPDR Gold Shares ( GLD ) were up 0.5%, and iShares Silver Trust ( SLV ) was 0.1% higher.