Dow Jones to lead Wall Street higher as peace hopes and earnings drive sentiment

US equity futures are pointing higher across the board this morning, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite all indicated to open in positive territory as investors build on a positive week for global markets.

The mood on Wall Street remains firmly upbeat, driven by a combination of easing geopolitical tension in the Middle East and a rotation back into beaten-up technology stocks, particularly software names that had lagged the broader market rally.

Ahead of the open, futures for the Dow Jones are up 0.4%, while those for the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq are 0.2% are 0.1% higher, respectively.

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq both closed at fresh all-time highs on Thursday, extending what has been a standout week for US equities. The Nasdaq has now logged 12 consecutive daily gains – its longest winning streak since 2009 – and is up more than 5% for the week alone. The S&P 500 has added 3.3% over the same period.

Saxo Markets strategist Neil Wilson summed up the prevailing mood succinctly: “War is over – that’s the message from the markets as the direction of travel seems towards peace and agreement, even if reopening the Strait of Hormuz may take longer. But mainly it’s about earnings and rotation back into some beaten-up tech – particularly software – stocks.”

It’s light on company reports today after Netflix Inc (NASDAQ:NFLX, XETRA:NFC) was the headline act on Thursday. Revenue reached $12.3 billion, up 16% year-on-year. EPS of $1.23 smashed the forecast of $0.79 by more than 55%. Despite the beat, shares are down 10% in pre-market trading, partly due to the announcement that co-founder Reed Hastings will exit the board in June, and slightly soft Q2 guidance. The company maintained full-year revenue growth guidance of 12%-14% and reiterated its target of roughly doubling advertising revenue to around $3 billion.