U.S. stock futures climbed early Friday. Wall Street is closing in on its eighth straight weekly gain.

Futures tied to the S&P 500 rose about 0.2% before the bell, while Dow Jones Industrial Average futures added roughly 124 points, or 0.25%, and Nasdaq 100 futures gained about 0.3%. The move builds on a calmer finish to a choppy week and sets up a quiet session ahead of a long weekend, with U.S. markets closed Monday, May 25, for Memorial Day.

Where the Major Indexes Stand

The S&P 500 rose 0.17% on Thursday to close at 7,445.72, its second straight advance after the benchmark snapped a three-day losing streak earlier in the week. The index is up about 0.5% week-to-date.

If that holds through Friday’s close, the S&P 500 will book its eighth consecutive weekly gain — its longest winning streak since a nine-week run that ended in late 2023. The rally has been carried by strong corporate earnings, steady enthusiasm around artificial intelligence, and a labor market that has not yet cracked.

Bond Yields and Oil Set the Tone

The week’s real story was the bond market. The 30-year Treasury yield climbed above 5.19% earlier this week, its highest level since before the 2008 financial crisis, before easing back to 5.09% on Thursday. The 10-year yield also retreated from the multi-month highs it touched on Monday. Rising long-term yields make stocks — especially richly valued tech names — relatively less attractive, which is why the surge rattled equities before the late-week pullback brought buyers back.

Oil prices cooled, too. West Texas Intermediate crude settled near $96.35 a barrel Thursday and Brent near $102.58, both down roughly 2%, as traders grew more optimistic about a de-escalation in the U.S.-Iran conflict. Tehran said it is reviewing Washington’s latest proposal to end the war. The picture is not settled: Reuters reported that Iran’s supreme leader directed the country to keep its enriched uranium at home, a move that could complicate a final deal and reignite supply worries around the Strait of Hormuz, the chokepoint for roughly a fifth of the world’s seaborne oil.

Consumer Sentiment in Focus

The one scheduled data point Friday is the final University of Michigan consumer sentiment reading for May, due at 10 a.m. ET. The preliminary figure landed at 48.2 — a record low — with the survey noting sentiment was “essentially unchanged” from April amid “a surge in concerns about high prices.”

The inflation expectations buried in that report matter more than the headline number. Year-ahead inflation expectations eased slightly to 4.5%, and long-run expectations dipped to 3.4%. Those readings feed directly into how policymakers think about the rate path, a dynamic spelled out in the latest Federal Reserve meeting minutes, which showed officials wary of cutting while price pressures remain elevated.

Earnings Momentum Underpins the Rally

Underneath the volatility, the earnings backdrop has done the heavy lifting. S&P 500 companies are on pace to grow first-quarter 2026 profits by roughly 27.7% year over year, according to FactSet, and about 84% of companies have topped estimates — on track for the strongest beat rate since the second quarter of 2021.

That strength is the main reason the index has absorbed a sharp move in long-term yields and still ground higher, as flagged in this week’s market preview. Late-week movers underscored the point: Ross Stores jumped nearly 7% after a strong quarter and a raised comparable-sales forecast, and Workday surged in extended trading on better-than-expected results.

What to Watch at Friday’s Open

  • Consumer sentiment, 10 a.m. ET. The final May University of Michigan reading — and especially its inflation-expectations components — is the only major U.S. data release of the day.
  • Oil and Iran headlines. Any shift in U.S.-Iran negotiations can move crude quickly, and crude has driven the inflation narrative all week.
  • Long-term Treasury yields. Watch the 30-year. A renewed push back toward 5.19% would pressure equities; continued easing supports the rally.
  • Thin, pre-holiday volume. Trading typically lightens ahead of a three-day weekend, which can exaggerate intraday swings. U.S. markets are closed Monday for Memorial Day and reopen Tuesday, May 26.