Dow, S&P 500 Futures Higher Amid Bank Earnings

A new earnings season unofficially kicked off today with a big batch of bank reports, which have so far been positive. Investors are also monitoring the Israel-Hamas war and its potential impact on oil supplies, as they await consumer sentiment data. Also in focus is the import price index for September, which rose a cooler-than-anticipated 0.1%. Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) and S&P 500 Index (SPX) futures are above breakeven, while Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX) futures are flat.

Continue reading for more on today's market, including: 

• Why these 3 stocks made outsized moves.
• First Solar stock brushed off an analyst upgrade.
• Plus, NFLX downgraded; JPM rises on record interest income; and Microsoft gets antitrust nod.

5 Things You Need to Know Today

1. The Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE) saw more than 1.1 million call contracts and 917,516 puts traded on Thursday. The single-session equity put/call ratio fell to 0.80 and the 21-day moving average stayed at 0.68.
2. Netflix Inc (NASDAQ:NFLX) stock is down 2% in premarket trading, after it saw a downgrade Wolfe Research to "peer perform," in addition to price-target cuts from Wells Fargo and MoffettNathanson to $460 and $325, respectively. Shares are up 22.5% in 2023, however.
3. Bank giant JPMorgan Chase & Co (NYSE:JPM) reported better-than-expected third-quarter profits this morning. The acquisition of First Republic Bank combined with higher rates led to record interest income. JPM is up 1.1% before the open, and added 40.7% in the last 12 months.
4. Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ: MSFT) got the green light from Britain's antitrust regulator to buy video game maker Activision Blizzard (ATVI) after restructuring the deal. The security is down 0.4% ahead of the bell, however, but still sports a 38% lead for 2023.

5. Check out what else was on tap this week. 

Asian Markets Fall After China's Inflation Data

Asian markets finished lower across the board on Friday, as investors unpacked inflation data out of China. The country’s consumer price index (CPI) for September came in flat, compared to analyst estimates of a 0.2% rise, while its producer price index (PPI) showed a 2.5% decline, compared to estimates of a 2.4% drop. Japan’s Nikkei and China’s Shanghai Composite both closed 0.6% lower, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 2.3%, and the South Korean Kospi shed 1%.

European bourses are lower as well. London’s FTSE 100 is down 0.4% at last glance, while the French CAC 40 drops 0.8%, and the German DAX falls 0.9%.