US futures higher as Wall Street banks deliver earnings

US futures are pointing higher on Friday morning, buoyed by a solid set of earnings from the major banks, and setting Wall Street up for its biggest weekly gain in at least one month.

Investors continue to mull the prospect of a US military strike on Syria, but a more cautious line from Donald Trump and his administration yesterday helped support stock markets around the world.

Futures for the S&P 500 are up 0.5 per cent half an hour out from the opening bell, while those for the Dow Jones Industrial Average are up 0.6 per cent and those for the Nasdaq 100 are up 0.5 per cent.

The S&P 500 is up 2.9 per cent so far this week. Anything bigger than the 3.5 per cent rise in the week ended March 9 will see the market chase its biggest week since mid-February.

Treasuries were weaker in morning trade, with yields (which move in the opposite direction to prices) slightly higher. The yield on the benchmark 10-year US Treasury was up 0.4 basis points to 2.8377 per cent.

In Europe, Germany’s Dax was up 0.8 per cent in Friday afternoon trade while London’s FTSE 100 was 0.2 per cent higher.