Bigger futures, Nvidia increases, Boeing union vote

Investing.com — U.S. stock futures rose on Thursday after a technology-fueled rally on Wall Street in the previous session. OpenAI is reportedly in talks to raise funds at a $150 billion valuation, possibly solidifying the company’s reputation as the poster child for booming artificial intelligence enthusiasm. Elsewhere, Boeing (NYSE: ) employees in the U.S. Pacific Northwest are likely to reject an interim labor contract and support a possible work stoppage, media reports say.

1. Futures inches bigger

U.S. futures rose on Thursday, pointing to an extension of a rally fueled by technology stocks in the previous session.

By 03:37 ET (0737 GMT), the contract added 83 points, or 0.2 percent, was up 12 points, or 0.2 percent, and gained 56 points, or 0.3 percent.

The main Wall Street averages advanced on Wednesday, with the technology industry in particular posting its biggest daily gain in a month.

A rally in artificial intelligence darling Nvidia (NASDAQ: ) (more below) supported the big-name tech stock and supported a rally in shares from the morning selloff following August U.S. inflation numbers.

While the data showed that the rise in core consumer prices on a monthly basis matched July’s pace, the “core” reading — which strips out volatile items such as food and fuel — accelerated slightly. The result boosted expectations that the Federal Reserve will roll out a more measured 25 basis point interest rate cut at its next policy meeting on September 17-18, rather than a more aggressive 50 basis point cut.

2. Global chipmakers rally after Nvidia surge

Global semiconductor groups rose on Thursday after gains in Nvidia shares.

SK Hynix (KS:), Honor Hai Precision Industry (TW:) and Advantest Corp. (TYO:) — all Nvidia suppliers — grew in Asian trade as well as Japan Tokyo Electron Ltd. (TYO:) and Renesas Electronics Corp . (TYO:). In Europe, ASM International (AS:) (AS:), ASML Holding (AS:) and STMicroelectronics (EPA:) were in the green in early trading.

The moves came after Nvidia’s share price rose 8.2 percent on Wednesday, its biggest one-day gain in six weeks. Shares were just below the flat line during extended trading hours.

3. OpenAI in talks to raise funds at $150bn valuation – reports

OpenAI is in talks to raise funds at a $150 billion valuation, according to news reports, potentially cementing its status as an AI pioneer and one of the world’s most valuable startups.

The company is considering raising $6.5 billion in equity financing and is also in talks with banks for a $5 billion credit line, Bloomberg News reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

The $150 billion valuation is nearly double the $86 billion it was valued at earlier this year. According to the Financial Times, venture capital firm Thrive Capital is leading the funding round, while other potential backers include Apple (NASDAQ: ), Nvidia and Microsoft (NASDAQ: ).

OpenAI’s popularity soared with the release of its ChatGPT bot in 2022, which helped ignite a wave of excitement around AI’s possible applications.

4. Boeing workers will vote on a tentative agreement

Boeing could face a strike as soon as Friday, when about 33,000 of the planemaker’s employees in the US Pacific Northwest vote to begin a work stoppage and reject a tentative labor agreement.

The company previously reached a tentative agreement for a 25 percent pay raise, along with a commitment to build a new plane in the Pacific Northwest, better retirement benefits and an increase in union input into plane quality.

However, the employees, who are represented by the International Machinists Association District 751, may reject the deal on Thursday, according to media reports. The workers are reportedly demanding bigger wage increases and other improvements to the deal.

A job action would increase scrutiny of Boeing’s new chief executive, Kelly Ortberg, who is currently trying to improve Boeing’s finances and rebuild its reputation after a dangerous mid-air hatch breach in January. Ortberg warned workers that a strike would put that recovery “at risk.”

5. Oil jumps

Oil prices rose in European trade on Thursday as expectations of supply disruptions from Hurricane Francine tempered lingering concerns about slowing global crude demand.

Hurricane Francine made landfall in Louisiana on Wednesday after passing through the Gulf of Mexico, where several oil companies limited or suspended operations in the storm’s path.

Expectations of tighter supply helped crude recover from near three-year lows hit earlier this week, although with the storm set to dissipate after it arrived, traders are starting to focus again on demand concerns.

that expires in November rose 1.6% to $71.71 a barrel, while crude oil futures climbed 1.5% to $67.57 a barrel by 03:38 ET.

Reuters contributed to this report.