FINWIRES · TerminalLIVE
FINWIRES

Update: US Equity Futures Lower Pre-Bell as Middle East Peace Prospects Dim

By

(Updates with economic data, recent oil price movement, world markets' overview and corporate stock movements.)

US equity futures were edging lower pre-bell Tuesday as prospects for a peace agreement in the Middle East dimmed with the US not seeking to extend the ceasefire agreement with Iran that expired Monday.

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were 0.1% lower, S&P 500 futures were down 0.5%, and Nasdaq futures were 1.3% lower.

Iran would shift to a "fully offensive" military posture to break the US naval blockade if diplomatic efforts to end the war fail, Reuters reported Tuesday, citing a senior Iranian official. Asked by reporters if the US was seeking to extend the ceasefire, President Donald Trump said no, according to Reuters.

Traders digested the latest round of earnings, with Home Depot (HD) reporting higher fiscal Q2 adjusted earnings and net sales.

Oil prices were higher, with front-month global benchmark North Sea Brent crude up 0.3% at $91.10 per barrel and US West Texas Intermediate crude 0.% higher at $84.29 per barrel.

July housing starts dropped to a 1.239 million annual rate from 1.415 million in the previous month, compared with expectations for a 1.345 million rate in a survey compiled by Bloomberg. US import prices fell 0.4% in July, compared with the 0.1% gain expected and the prior 0.3% decrease in June. US export prices fell 1.3% in July, compared with expectations for no change and the 0.7% decrease in the prior month.

The July industrial production report, due at 9:15 am ET, is forecast to show a 0.3% gain following a 0.1% increase in the prior month. Pending home sales for July, slated for 10 a.m. ET, are expected to hold steady after a drop of 5.4% in the prior month.

In other world markets, Japan's Nikkei closed 2.5% lower, Hong Kong's Hang Seng ended 0.1% higher, and China's Shanghai Composite finished 0.2% higher. Meanwhile, the UK's FTSE 100 was up 0.1%, and Germany's DAX index was 0.3% lower in Europe's early afternoon session.

In equities, stocks of Nvidia (NVDA), Micron Technology (MU), and AMD (AMD) were all down as part of a wider downswing in the technology sector. Nvidia shares dropped 2%, Micron stock fell 4.8%, and AMD shares were 3.5% lower.

On the winning side, Home Depot stock was 2.1% higher after the company posted better-than-expected fiscal Q2 adjusted earnings and net sales. Alibaba Group (BABA) shares rose 3% after Alipay said Monday it launched a full-stack agentic AI commerce platform for merchants. Targa Resources (TRGP) stock was up 3.6% after the company said late Monday it struck new 20-year fee-based, midstream agreements to support ExxonMobil's (XOM) development of its Permian Basin acreage.

Related Articles

Asia Markets

Update: US Equity Indexes Slide After Trump's Threats to Bomb Oman Lifts Crude Oil, 30-Year Treasury Yield Touches 19-Year High

(Updates with index/price moves, macroeconomic data, and company/geopolitical news from the first paragraph.)US equity indexes fell after President Donald Trump warned of attacks against Oman on the day a deadline to reach a permanent peace deal with Iran expired, and as the 30-year US government bond yield jumped to the highest in more than 19 years.The Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.3% to 26,644.91, the S&P 500 declined 0.5% to 7,745.06, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 0.5% to 53,459.78 on Monday. All sectors except energy retreated, led by declines in communication services, consumer staples, financials and consumer discretionary. Technology was one of the outperformers.Monday marks 60 days since the US and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding that called for a wider peace deal to be negotiated within that timeframe, CBS NEWS reported. On the same day, Trump threatened to bomb Oman if the country "gets in the way" of US efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and end the war with Iran, CBS cited Fox News.Earlier, Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman said Tehran had reached an agreement with Oman regarding future shipping routes in the strait, according to the CBS report. That being said, Iran has decided to shift its policy from defensive to "fully offensive" due to the deadlock in efforts to secure a permanent end to its war with the United States, a senior Iranian official told Reuters on Monday.Brigadier General Yadollah Javani, head of the political bureau of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, told state television on Sunday night that his forces were ready to take whatever action is needed to defend the country, according to a report from Al Jazeera, a Middle Eastern broadcaster.Crude oil futures jumped, with the front-month US West Texas Intermediate contract up 3% to $84.90 per barrel and global benchmark North Sea Brent rising 2.8% to $91.02 per barrel.Most US Treasury yields rose, with the 30-year surging 4.3 basis points to 5.31%, the highest since 2002. The 10-year yield climbed 2.8 basis points to 4.72%, and the two-year climbed 1.3 basis points to 4.18%.Gold futures advanced 0.8% to $4,472.1, and silver futures jumped 1.2% to $65.92.While equity indices are trading close to all-time highs, there is evidence that "challenging" August crosswinds are playing out in bond markets, according to a note from Deutsche Bank. "Expectations for an imminent Fed rate hike have been pulled back, but this has been accompanied by a significant US curve steepening, with the backdrop of higher oil prices, elevated fiscal deficits, and demand for capital from the AI investment boom putting upward pressure on yields."In economic news, the National Association of Home Builders' monthly housing market index rose to 35 in August from 34 in July, compared with expectations for a decline to 33 in a Bloomberg-compiled poll. The index was above 32 a year earlier.The New York Federal Reserve's Empire State manufacturing index rose to 20.6 in August from 15.6 in July, compared with an expected decrease to 10.0 in a Bloomberg-compiled survey. The Empire State index is the first manufacturing sector reading for August and suggests expansion is picking up pace.In company news, Amazon-backed (AMZN) Anthropic informed potential investors that Q2 revenue increased at least 14-fold from a year earlier to over $11.5 billion, Bloomberg News reported Monday, citing documents.Among companies with market capitalizations exceeding $200 billion each, eight of the top 10 by Monday's returns were in the technology sector, according to data compiled by Finviz. Of those eight firms, five were related to the semiconductor industry. Sandisk (SNDK) led the pack, with an 8.9% gain.

Dow JonesNasdaq CompositeS&P 500$AMZN$SNDK
Asia Markets

Exchange-Traded Funds Fall, US Equities Mixed After Midday

Broad Market IndicatorsBroad-market exchange-traded funds IWM and IVV edged lower. Actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) added 0.1%.US equity indexes traded mixed, as speculation about Anthropic's Q2 sales propped up technology and President Donald Trump warned Oman of attacks on the day a deadline to reach a permanent peace deal with Iran expired.EnergyIShares US Energy ETF (IYE) and the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR (XLE) each rose about 0.6%.TechnologyThe State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) gained 0.6%; iShares US Technology ETF (IYW) and iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF (IGM) also advanced.The State Street SPDR S&P Semiconductor (XSD) added 2.3%, and iShares Semiconductor (SOXX) was up 2.5%.FinancialThe State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR (XLF) eased 0.4%. Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS) declined 1.4%, and its bearish counterpart, Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ), advanced 1.2%.CommoditiesCrude oil rose 0.5%, and the United States Oil Fund (USO) added 1.2%. Natural gas shed 1.6%, and the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) was down 1.2%.Gold on Comex added 1%, and the State Street SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) was up 1.1%. Silver gained 2.1%, and iShares Silver Trust (SLV) was up 2.5%.ConsumerThe State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR (XLP) was down 1.4%. The Vanguard Consumer Staples ETF (VDC) fell 1.1%, and iShares Dow Jones US Consumer Goods (IYK) eased 1.4%.The State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR (XLY) was down 1.1%. VanEck Retail ETF (RTH) fell 0.8%, and the State Street SPDR S&P Retail (XRT) shed 1.3%.HealthcareThe State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR (XLV) added 0.1%. iShares US Healthcare (IYH) and Vanguard Health Care ETF (VHT) edged higher as well. IShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) climbed 1.8%.IndustrialThe State Street Industrial Select Sector SPDR (XLI) added 0.5%. Vanguard Industrials Index Fund (VIS) and iShares US Industrials (IYJ) were also slightly higher.CryptocurrencyIn midday activity, bitcoin (BTC-USD) advanced 1.8%. Among cryptocurrency ETFs, ProShares Bitcoin ETF (BITO) added 1.8%, ProShares Ether ETF (EETH) was up 1.7%, and ProShares Bitcoin & Ether Market Cap Weight ETF (BETH) was up 1.3%.

Dow Jones^EEM^EXI^FAS^FAZ^GLD^IBB^IGM^IGV^IPK^IVV^IWMNasdaq Composite^IYE^IYH^IYJ^IYK^IYW^PMR^QQQ^RTH^SOXXS&P 500^SPY^UNG^USO^VDC^VHT^VIS^XLE^XLF^XLI^XLK^XLP^XLV^XRT^XSD$BETH$BITO$EETH
Asia Markets

Update: US Equity Indexes Mixed as Tech Gains Lift Nasdaq, Trump Threatens to Bomb Oman as Iran Peace Deal Deadline Expires

(Updates with index/price moves, macroeconomic data, and company/geopolitical news from the first paragraph.)US equity indexes traded mixed, as speculation about Anthropic's Q2 sales propped up technology and President Donald Trump warned Oman of attacks on the day a deadline to reach a permanent peace deal with Iran expired.The Nasdaq Composite was little changed at 26,718.2 after midday Monday. The S&P 500 slipped 0.2% to 7,770.7, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.4% to 53,545.8.Amazon-backed (AMZN) Anthropic informed potential investors that Q2 revenue increased at least 14-fold from a year earlier to over $11.5 billion, Bloomberg News reported Monday, citing documents.Among companies with market capitalizations exceeding $200 billion each, seven of the top 10 by intraday returns were in the technology sector, according to data compiled by Finviz. Of those seven firms, five were related to the semiconductor industry. Sandisk (SNDK) led the pack, with a 9.1% gain.Monday marks 60 days since the US and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding that called for a wider peace deal to be negotiated within that timeframe, CBS NEWS reported. On the same day, Trump threatened to bomb Oman if the country "gets in the way" of US efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and end the war with Iran, CBS cited Fox News.Earlier, Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman said Tehran had reached an agreement with Oman regarding future shipping routes in the strait, according to the CBS report. That being said, Iran has decided to shift its policy from defensive to "fully offensive" due to the deadlock in efforts to agree a permanent end to its war with the United States, a senior Iranian official told Reuters on Monday.The front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil contract rose 0.1% to $82.51 per barrel, and global benchmark North Sea Brent edged up 0.4% to $88.86 per barrel.The National Association of Home Builders' monthly housing market index rose to 35 in August from 34 in July, compared with expectations for a decline to 33 in a Bloomberg-compiled poll. The index was above 32 a year earlier.The New York Federal Reserve's Empire State manufacturing index rose to 20.6 in August from 15.6 in July, compared with an expected decrease to 10.0 in a Bloomberg-compiled survey. The Empire State index is the first manufacturing sector reading for August and suggests expansion is picking up pace.US Treasury yields traded mixed, with the 10-year yield up a basis point to 4.71% while the two-year slipped one basis point to 4.17%.Gold futures advanced 1% to $4,481.2, and silver futures jumped 2.1% to $66.51.

Dow JonesNasdaq CompositeS&P 500$AMZN$SNDK