US stock futures rose Monday morning as Wall Street balanced high hopes for a packed week featuring high-profile earnings against fresh inflation data, all happening alongside the continuing government shutdown.

Futures attached to the Dow Jones Industrial Average (YM=F) rose 0.2% while contracts on the S&P 500 (ES=F), and Nasdaq 100 (NQ=F) gained 0.3% and 0.4% respectively.

Stocks are coming off weekly wins, rising Friday after President Trump indicated that his threatened level of tariffs on China are "not sustainable." The comments came as the Trump administration also recently exempted dozens of products from his reciprocal tariffs and could remove duties on even more.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent also told reporters that relations with Beijing have “de-escalated,” adding that he expects to meet with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng this week. Traders took the remarks as a sign that Trump’s threatened 100% additional tariff on Chinese imports set for Nov. 1 may not come to pass.

Meanwhile, the US government shutdown has entered its third week, with Democrats and Republicans still at odds over federal healthcare subsidies. Economists warn that a prolonged standoff could dent near-term GDP growth, though most see any slowdown as temporary.

The federal stoppage has slammed the brakes on crucial inflation and jobs data key to the Federal Reserve's decision making. But the Bureau of Labor Statistics on Friday is set to release September's Consumer Price Index, after a delay of more than a week.

Analysts expect to see that inflation remains stubbornly high. The data could prove pivotal for the Fed’s rate path, with the central bank set for its decision at its meeting next week.

Also, earnings season shifts into high gear this week. Reports from Netflix (NFLX), Coca-Cola (KO), Tesla (TSLA), and Intel (INTC) lead the way.

Bloomberg reports:

Gold (GC=F) swung between gains and losses — following a sharp sell-off that swept the broader the precious metals complex at the end of last week — as signs of easing US-China tensions bolstered sentiment across markets.

Bullion fluctuated before trading little changed as Asian markets opened Monday, extending the volatility that followed Friday’s 1.7% drop — the steepest daily loss since May. Silver retreated as much as 1.2% before trimming losses, after closing 4.3% lower in the previous session on signs that a squeeze in London stockpiles may be easing.

Technical indicators, including the relative strength index, show that a ferocious rally for precious metals that began in August — and pushed gold and silver to fresh all-time highs last week — may be overheated, setting the stage for pullbacks.

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