Ray: Good morning, this is Biscuits and Tickers for Monday, October twelfth. I'm Ray.

Nora: And I'm Nora. Stock futures are roughly flat to start a big week, with oil holding above one hundred dollars a barrel, fresh violence in the Middle East, and bank earnings and inflation data just ahead. One housekeeping note: it's Columbus Day, also Indigenous Peoples' Day. Stocks trade normal hours, but the bond market is closed.

Ray: Here's where things stand at about eight thirty Eastern. Exchange-traded funds that track the big indexes show a quiet open. The S and P 500 fund is up about three hundredths of a percent before the bell. The Dow fund is up about two tenths of a percent. The Nasdaq 100 fund is down about a quarter of a percent, and the Russell 2000 small-cap fund is flat. Yahoo Finance reports Dow and S and P futures up about a tenth of a percent, with Nasdaq futures little changed.

Ray: That follows a solid Friday. The S and P 500 closed up about six tenths of a percent at 7,811. The Nasdaq 100 rose about half a percent, and the Dow gained about eight tenths of a percent. Yahoo notes the S and P and the Nasdaq hit record highs last week, and the bull market just turned four years old.

Nora: Cross-asset, oil is the story. TheStreet reports Brent crude up a bit more than one percent, around one hundred and six dollars a barrel, and West Texas Intermediate near ninety three dollars. The big oil fund is up almost two percent pre-market. Gold is down about half a percent, near forty one hundred ninety-five dollars an ounce. CoinDesk has the dollar index firm above one hundred two, and bitcoin just above eighty three thousand dollars.

Nora: With cash Treasuries closed today, the ten-year yield last stood near five point two four percent, according to Yahoo Finance. That elevated level remains one of the market's main hurdles. The VIX, Wall Street's fear gauge, is up to about fifteen and a half after closing below fifteen on Friday.

Ray: On the calendar, today is light. There's no major U.S. economic data on Monday, and no large-cap earnings are on the schedule. The week ramps up fast. Tuesday brings the big banks: JPMorgan Chase, ticker J P M, Goldman Sachs, ticker G S, and Citigroup, ticker C.

Ray: Wednesday is the September consumer price index. TD Securities expects core prices up about two tenths of a percent for the month, with core near two point four percent from a year earlier, though it sees upside risks. Thursday brings the producer price index and retail sales. Fed Chair Kevin Warsh speaks at the IMF meetings in Bangkok on Thursday.

Nora: Our top story: tensions in the Middle East are rising again. TheStreet and Yahoo Finance report that Houthi attacks on Riyadh's international airport over the weekend killed at least twelve people, by some counts thirteen, including an American. President Trump suggested the U.S. may join Saudi Arabia in strikes on the Houthis in Yemen.

Nora: Shipping is in the crosshairs too. TheStreet reports a tanker was hit by a drone near Sohar, Oman, and another was damaged passing through the Strait of Hormuz. The Houthis are also threatening traffic through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. Separately, Iran is reviewing a U.S. response to its Strait of Hormuz proposal, with the nuclear program still the central sticking point. That backdrop is keeping a risk premium in oil.

Ray: Second story: energy diplomacy with Russia. President Trump announced plans to import Russian diesel to bring down fuel prices before the midterms. According to Yahoo Finance, he said Russia would supply three hundred thousand metric tons immediately, with more in November. European gasoil futures fell about three percent on the news.

Ray: Trump also said Russia and Ukraine agreed to stop targeting each other's energy infrastructure. But TheStreet reports Ukraine said attacks on its energy facilities continued, and six bipartisan senators urged the administration to reverse course, saying the diesel plan conflicts with sanctions policy. Oil briefly dipped on the headlines before turning higher.

Nora: Third story: SpaceX, ticker S P C X, is pushing deeper into mobile. TheStreet reports the company plans to buy Grain Management's nationwide eight hundred megahertz spectrum portfolio for about eight billion dollars. The Federal Communications Commission also approved its plan for fifteen thousand direct-to-device satellites for Starlink Mobile.

Nora: SpaceX shares are up about one percent pre-market. TheStreet says the news weighed on telecom stocks in Europe, Australia and New Zealand on worries about satellite competition. U.S. carriers are steadier this morning. T-Mobile, ticker T M U S, is up about one percent after a Raymond James upgrade.

Ray: Now the movers, mostly on analyst calls. Salesforce, ticker C R M, is up about four percent after Bank of America upgraded it two notches, from underperform to buy, according to 24/7 Wall Street. First Solar, ticker F S L R, is up nearly four percent on a Truist upgrade to buy. Biogen, ticker B I I B, is up nearly four percent after JPMorgan upgraded it to overweight, citing a slate of upcoming trial data.

Ray: On the downside, Adobe, ticker A D B E, is down about three percent after Wells Fargo cut it to underweight. Iren, ticker I R E N, is up almost four percent after CoinDesk reported a multiyear cloud services deal with Anthropic. Robinhood Markets and Interactive Brokers drew new coverage at Evercore I S I.

Nora: By sector, energy is firmer with crude. Exxon Mobil, ticker X O M, is up nearly one percent, and defense names like Lockheed Martin are slightly higher on the Middle East news. Big tech is a touch softer, with Nvidia, ticker N V D A, down about half a percent. Bank stocks are edging up ahead of Tuesday's reports. Yahoo cites BNP Paribas research: the S and P is up about thirteen and a half percent this year, but outside AI names the gain is closer to five and a half percent.

Ray: Here's what to watch today. First, oil and any U.S. decision on joining strikes against the Houthis. Second, follow-up on the Russian diesel plan and pushback in Congress. Third, how tech trades with yields near five and a quarter percent and the bond market shut.

Nora: And looking ahead: big-bank earnings Tuesday, the September CPI Wednesday, then producer prices, retail sales and Fed Chair Warsh on Thursday. Analysts expect strong third-quarter earnings growth, though TheStreet notes it is highly concentrated.

Ray: That's Biscuits and Tickers for Monday, October twelfth. This is general market news, not investment advice. I'm Ray.

Nora: And I'm Nora. Have a good start to the week.