US Markets
Stocks Rise Pre-Bell Ahead of Fed Policy Meeting; Traders Seek Details on US-Iran Peace Deal
US equity markets were tracking in the green before the open Tuesday as traders await the Federal Reserve's latest decision on interest rates and keep an eye out for more details on the peace deal between the US and Iran.The S&P 500 was slightly in the green, the Dow Jones Industrial Average edged up 0.1% and the Nasdaq added 0.2% in premarket activity. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq finished Monday trading up for a third consecutive session, while the Dow notched a new all-time high.US markets will be closed on Friday for the Juneteenth National Independence Day holiday.The Fed's monetary policy committee is set to kick off its meeting on interest rates today, with a decision due tomorrow. Markets widely expect the central bank to keep its benchmark lending rate unchanged for a fourth consecutive meeting, according to the CME FedWatch tool."We expect the Warsh Fed to move slowly on interest rates, especially with expectations for an end to the war," D.A. Davidson said. "The Fed, however, could remove its easing bias (a view that rates will be lower over the medium term)."The Fed's so-called "dot plot" may signal no interest rate cuts until 2028, UBS Securities said Monday. The brokerage flagged the possibility of a tighter monetary policy amid the energy price shock stemming from the Middle East conflict.Treasury yields were down in premarket action, with the two-year rate retreating 1.2 basis points to 4.05%, while the 10-year rate was off 2.4 basis points to 4.45%.While markets remain optimistic following the US-Iran deal announcement, ship owners, traders and oil-producing nations are seeking more clarity on the terms of the agreement to end the war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, Bloomberg News reported. Executives and officials said they need more details on the deal before resuming oil shipments through the key waterway, the report added."Flows through the Strait will take time to normalize even if the (memorandum of understanding) holds," Rystad Energy said in a note emailed toon Tuesday. "We are not going back to a pre-crisis oil market, but instead we are entering a more uncertain, more volatile one."West Texas Intermediate crude oil fell 2.5% to $78.73 a barrel before the open, while Brent slipped 2.4% to $81.18.The US and Iran are scheduled to sign their peace deal in Switzerland on Friday.Tuesday's economic calendar also has the housing starts and permits report for May at 8:30 am ET, along with the import and export prices data for the same month.SpaceX (SPCX) shares jumped 10% pre-bell after closing the previous trading session up 20%. Huntsman (HUN) fell 9.4% as it agreed to an all-stock merger of equals with Olin (OLN).John Wiley & Sons (WLY) reports its latest financial results before the bell, while La-Z-Boy (LZB) posts earnings after the markets close.Gold nudged 0.4% higher to $4,367 per troy ounce, while bitcoin slipped less than 0.1% to $66,586.
Dow JonesNasdaq CompositeS&P 500$HUN$OLN$SPCX$WLY
