5 things to know before the market opens Friday

Happy Friday. It’s Jerome Powell’s last day as the chair of the Federal Reserve, marking the end of an era at the central bank.

Stock futures are falling this morning. The three major indexes gained yesterday and are on track for a positive week.

Here are five key things investors need to know to start the trading day:

President Donald Trump has left Beijing following two days of meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping. The U.S. president told reporters aboard Air Force One this morning that he refused to answer when Xi asked him if the U.S. would defend Taiwan from an attack by China. “That question was asked to me today by President Xi. I said I don’t talk about that,” he said.

Here’s what to know:

• Oil prices are jumping after Trump said in a pre-recorded Fox News interview that China agreed to buy U.S. crude, though Beijing hasn’t confirmed the plans.
• The president said this morning that he would make a decision about lifting sanctions on Chinese companies that buy Iranian oil “over the next few days.”
• Trump also told Fox News that China would purchase 200 Boeing jets, a smaller number than some on Wall Street expected.
• Xi reportedly told U.S. CEOs travelling with Trump — which included Tesla’s Elon Musk, Nvidia’s Jensen Huang and Apple’s Tim Cook — that the door to doing business in China will open wider.
• Trump invited Xi to visit the White House on Sept. 24. It was not clear if the Chinese leader will accept the invitation.

Cerebras shares surged 68% in their Nasdaq debut yesterday, sending the chipmaker’s market cap to around $95 billion. It was the U.S. technology sector’s largest initial public offerings in years.

The stock’s surge on Thursday made Cerebras co-founders Andrew Feldman and Sean Lie billionaires, based on their stakes in the company. The day-one surge was also a win for Silicon Valley venture capitalists amid an IPO dry spell.

Speaking of going public: Sources told CNBC that SpaceX’s IPO prospectus could drop as early as next week. Musk’s reusable rocket company is expected to start a roadshow aimed at marketing the deal to investors early next month, according to people familiar with the matter.

Automakers are slowing their roll on expanding their workforce. As CNBC’s Michael Wayland reports, legacy carmakers are laying off workers as they grapple with the rise of AI and other technological changes in the industry.

Filings and employment data show the “Detroit Three” — GM, Ford and Stellantis — have collectively cut more than 20,000 U.S. salaried jobs, about 19% of the companies’ combined workforces.

Meanwhile, lawmakers are urging Trump to keep Chinese car producers out of the U.S. market, warning that failing to do so could threaten domestic manufacturing jobs. Chinese companies already have a foothold in the U.S. auto supply chain, though, through their ownership of U.S.-based part suppliers.

The Senate banking committee on Thursday approved the Clarity Act. As CNBC’s Emily Wilkins notes, it’s a big win for the cryptocurrency industry.

The act, the first piece of legislation focused on crypto, would add oversight and guardrails to the new industry. However, banks, unions and law enforcement agencies have come out against the bill citing concerns that it would hurt consumers and financial systems. The Clarity Act, which was approved by the banking committee in a largely party-line vote, still needs to clear the full Senate as well as the House.

Elsewhere in crypto, Gemini unveiled a $100 million strategic investment from its owners’ venture capital fund. Shares of the crypto exchange surged more than 20% in premarket trading.

Here are a few stories we’d recommend making time for this weekend:

— CNBC’s April Roach, Dan Mangan, Leslie Josephs, Arjun Kharpal, Lora Kolodny, Evelyn Cheng, Kevin Breuninger, Sean Conlon, Michael Wayland, Luke Fountain, Jordan Novet, Kif Leswing, CJ Haddad, Emily Wilkins and Tanaya Macheel contributed to this report.

Davis Giangiulio assisted in the production of this newsletter. Josephine Rozzelle edited this edition.