Wall Street Wavers Amid Earnings Setbacks and Trade Tensions

Wall Street futures fell as Tesla and IBM reported disappointing earnings, sparking concerns amid ongoing U.S.-China trade tensions. Despite some company profits surpassing expectations, cautious outlooks have led to uncertainty. The market awaits key economic signals during a prolonged U.S. government shutdown, with Fed rate decisions and trade talks in focus.

Futures for Wall Street's primary indexes dipped on Thursday following underwhelming quarterly results from Tesla and IBM, affecting investor sentiment amidst persisting U.S.-China trade tensions.

Tesla's missed third-quarter profit expectations caused a 3.1% drop in premarket trading, overshadowing their revenue surplus. Meanwhile, IBM shares fell 6.8% due to slow growth in their cloud software sector despite better-than-expected third-quarter results.

Quantum computing companies like IonQ and D-Wave Quantum gained over 10%, fueled by reports of U.S. government investment discussions. However, persistent data drought amid a prolonged government shutdown has left investors without customary economic signals, with upcoming U.S.–China trade talks and Fed rate decisions now in sharper focus.

(With inputs from agencies.)