S&P 500 futures edged slightly lower on Thursday as surging rates continued to worry investors as they have during what’s been a very weak month and quarter for stocks. Futures tied to the broader index were lower by 0.1%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were flat. Nasdaq 100 futures were down 0.2%, weighed down by a decline in certain tech shares. The yield on the benchmark U.S. 10-year Treasury hit a fresh 15-year high in early trading Thursday as data out Thursday showed a still resilient labor market with jobless claims coming in less than expected. . The stock market has been taking its cues from the bond market lately with any surge in rates raising worries about a recession and sending equities to new lows. The S&P 500 hit the lowest since June this week as the 10-year yield hit its highest since 2007. Micron Technology slid more than 4% after offering weak earnings guidance for the current quarter. Key megacap tech shares like Microsoft, Apple and Amazon were lower in premarket trading. Friday marks the end of what has been a tough trading month and quarter. As of Wednesday’s close, the Dow is poised to end 3.4% down on the month and 2.5% lower in the quarter. The S&P 500 is slated to finish the month down 5.2% and the quarter off by about 4%. The Nasdaq is on pace to finish the month and quarter losing 6.7% and 5%, respectively. Investors will be turning their attention to the latest personal consumption expenditures price index reading due Friday. The PCE reading is the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation metric. The “equity market needs reprieve on the rates front to move higher, and the Fed needs to downshift from their hawkish position for that to happen,” said Ross Mayfield, investment strategy analyst at Baird. “PCE and other inflation data will be critical.” Wall Street is also keeping an eye on Washington, as lawmaker negotiations on a U.S. spending bill continue before a Oct. 1st deadline. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy told CNBC Thursday morning that he was confident that Congress would avoid a shutdown this weekend, though he criticized a bill proposed by the Senate for not dealing with border security. Traders have their doubts that McCarthy can get his party in the House aligned by the deadline. The U.S. 10-year Treasury touched a new high on Thursday, as investors looked to key economic reports and concerns persisted over the outlook for monetary policy, particularly high interest rates. The yield on the benchmark 10-year note was little changed at 4.626% after earlier touching a fresh 15-year high of 4.643%. The yield on the 2-year Treasury was up by less than 1 basis point at 5.148%. Asia-Pacific markets largely fell after notching some gains on Wednesday as an uptick in Treasury yields and oil prices dented investor sentiment on Wall Street. The benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yield hit its highest levels since 2007 and U.S. crude futures popped more than 3% to settle at $93.68 per barrel. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index slid 1.41% in its final hour, after the exchange announced that shares of embattled Chinese real estate firm Evergrande have been suspended. Mainland Chinese stocks were also slightly down on Thursday, with the CSI 300 losing 0.3% and ending at 3,689.51. Japan’s Nikkei 225 slipped 1.54% to end at 31,872.52, the first time in about a month that the index has fallen below the 32,000 mark, while the Topix saw a smaller loss of 1.43% and ended at 2,345.51. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 extended Wednesday’s losses and lost 0.08%, reaching its lowest level since July 10. South Korea’s markets are closed for a public holiday. Oil prices surged to their highest level in over a year during Asian trading hours, after crude stocks at a key storage hub fell to their lowest since July last year. Crude inventories in Cushing, Oklahoma fell to 22 million barrels in the fourth week of September — hovering close to the operational minimum, according to data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). That’s a drop of 943,000 barrels compared to the prior week. The U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures touched $95.03 per barrel during Asia trading hours, marking the highest since August 2022. It was last trading at $94.61 per barrel. Global benchmark Brent rose 1.05% to $97.56 a barrel. Gold prices were subdued on Thursday, having slid to their lowest in about six months in the last session, as an elevated U.S. dollar and Treasury yields continued to exert pressure on the non-yielding metal. Spot gold was steady at $1,874.29 per ounce, hovering near its lowest level since March 13 hit on Wednesday. U.S. gold futures traded at $1,891.30.