Virpax Reports Positive Results In Human Study For Its Molecular Envelope Technology

US stocks looked set to open marginally lower in Friday's trading session as retail sales in January fell far more than expected.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were down 0.15%, S&P 500 futures were off 0.05%, and Nasdaq futures were edging 0.03% lower.

Oil prices were moving higher, with front-month global benchmarks Brent crude and West Texas Intermediate crude rising 0.97% and 0.88% respectively.

Retail sales for January fell 0.9%, well off the 0.2% decline expected by analysts, according to Bloomberg, while core retail sales lost 0.4%, compared with analyst forecasts of a 0.3% gain.

In other world markets, Japan's Nikkei declined 0.79%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng soared 3.69%, and China's Shanghai Composite gained 0.43%. Meanwhile in Europe's early afternoon session, the UK's FTSE 100 and Germany's DAX were both down 0.30%, while France's CAC 40 was up 0.36%.

In equities, shares of WeRide jumped 84% in Friday's premarket session after Nvidia (NVDA) disclosed a stake in the company. Virpax Pharmaceuticals' shares advanced 58% after it said late Thursday that it completed the full study that followed the initial Probudur pilot study performed by the US Army Institute of Surgical Research. Moleculin Biotech's stock surged 54%, adding to a 202% gain the previous session. OS Therapies climbed 36% after it said Friday that it signed agreements for the commercial manufacture of OST/HER2 to treat osteosarcoma, which is a type of bone cancer. And shares of Zoomcar were up 10%, adding to a 5% gain on Thursday.

On the losing side, shares of Bellevue Life Sciences Acquisition plunged 39%, more than wiping out a 13% gain on Thursday. Bolt Projects' stock tumbled 42% after soaring 303% the previous session. Shares of Mynaric shed 34%, piling on to a 32% loss on Thursday when it said it received a Nasdaq delisting notice. Serve Robotics dropped 37%, erasing a 17% gain the previous session after Nvidia said it a filing that it has exited its stake in the company. And shares of Informatica (INFA) dropped 33% after it reported Q1 and full-year 2025 guidance late Thursday that missed analyst forecasts.

Virpax Pharmaceuticals shares were up 69% in recent Friday premarket activity after the company said overnight it completed its full trial that followed the initial Probudur pilot study performed by the US Army Institute of Surgical Research.

Nu Skin Enterprises stock was 26% higher after the company posted overnight higher Q4 earnings.

Zoomcar Holdings shares were up 15%, a day after the company said in a regulatory filing that Nasdaq granted its request for continued listing on the stock exchange.

Airbnb stock was 14% higher, a day after the company said it swung to Q4 earnings and reported higher revenue during the quarter.

US stock futures were trending modestly lower in Friday's premarket session as investors await retail sales and industrial production figures later in the morning.

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were down 0.27%, S&P 500 futures were off 0.15%, and Nasdaq futures were declining 0.16%.

Oil prices were moving higher, with front-month global benchmarks Brent crude and West Texas Intermediate crude rising 0.89% and 0.73% respectively.

Retail sales for January are expected to decline 0.2% after gaining 0.4% the previous month, according to Bloomberg. Industrial production is expected to increase 0.3% in January, following a 0.9% gain in December.

In equities, shares of WeRide soared 95% in Friday's premarket session, adding to a 3.7% gain on Thursday. Virpax Pharmaceuticals' shares advanced 76% after saying late Thursday that it completed the full study that followed the initial Probudur pilot study performed by the US Army Institute of Surgical Research. Moleculin Biotech's stock surged 65%, adding to a huge 202% gain in the previous session.

On the losing side, shares of Bellevue Life Sciences Acquisition plunged 41%, more than wiping out a 13% gain on Thursday. Jerash shares tumbled 37% after a 2.6% gain in the previous session, and shares of Mynaric shed 36%, piling on to a 32% loss on Thursday after saying it received a Nasdaq delisting notice.