Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York City, U.S., Sept. 17, 2025. <\/p>\n
Brendan McDermid | Reuters<\/p>\n
Stock futures rose Monday after a sizable regional bank merger spurred enthusiasm a bigger M&A wave is on the way and as AMD shares surged on a partnership with OpenAI. The market continued to grind higher even as a government shutdown dragged on into a second week.<\/p>\n
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures<\/a> gained 93 points, or 0.2%. S&P 500 futures<\/a> rose 0.4%, while Nasdaq-100 futures<\/a> advanced 0.7%.<\/p>\n The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite are coming off their fourth weekly advance in five weeks, rising 1.1% and 1.3%, respectively. The Dow rose for the third time in four weeks, advancing 1.1%.<\/p>\n AMD shares jumped more than 20% in early trading after reaching a deal<\/a> with Sam Altman’s AI leader that could ultimately end up giving the ChatGPT company a 10% stake in the chipmaker via a warrant with different tranches. AMD will use certain graphics processing units rolled out over multiple years.<\/p>\n Comerica shares rallied 11% after Fifth Third Bancorp reached a deal<\/a> to buy the fellow regional bank for $10.9 billion in an all-stock transaction. The merger will form the ninth-largest U.S. bank by assets. The SPDR S&P Regional Banking ETF jumped 1% in early trading on expectations more deals were ahead in the space. Overall M&A has been picking up, adding to the animal spirits seen in the stock market this year.<\/p>\n