Current Dow futures opened 0.15% higher, supported by a rally in banking stocks following improved lending margins. Traders eye the upcoming Fed minutes for clues on monetary policy pivot timing. The government shutdown comes after major indices recorded gains last month; the S&P 500 gained more than 3% in September, the Dow added almost 2%, and the Nasdaq jumped 5.6% during the month. Over in India, the benchmark Nifty 50 was down 0.64%, while the BSE Sensex index lost 0.65% as of 2:02 p.m. Indian Standard Time (4:32 a.m. ET). Current Dow futures climbed 0.14%, supported by defensive health care gains and rotation out of higher-beta tech names. Analysts expect volatility compression as the VIX continues to trend lower.