U.S. stock futures pointed higher on Tuesday as semiconductor stocks rebounded and an early round of corporate earnings results came in above expectations, even as fighting between the U.S. and Iran continued.
S&P 500 futures rose 0.6% and Nasdaq 100 futures climbed 1.4% Tuesday as semiconductor stocks led a recovery and 87% of early S&P 500 reporters topped estimates
Michael M. Santiago / Getty Images
U.S. stock futures pointed higher on Tuesday as semiconductor stocks rebounded and an early round of corporate earnings results came in above expectations, even as fighting between the U.S. and Iran continued.
Nasdaq $NDAQ 100 futures were up 1.3% and S&P 500 futures added 0.6%, with Dow Jones Industrial Average futures advancing 169 points, or 0.3%. The moves followed a losing session on Monday, when rising oil prices weighed on the major averages.
Semiconductor stocks led the early gains. The VanEck Semiconductor ETF climbed more than 3% before the bell. Marvell Technology and Micron $MU Technology each gained 6%, while Intel $INTC advanced more than 5%.
The earnings picture has been strong so far. 3M $MMM stock surged more than 7% on stronger-than-expected second-quarter earnings, while General Motors $GM added 2% after its results also came in ahead of profit estimates. With about 54 S&P 500 companies having disclosed results, 87% have cleared profit expectations, according to CNBC, citing FactSet. Alphabet $GOOGL, IBM $IBM, and Tesla $TSLA are among the major names scheduled to report later this week.
Traders will be paying close attention to what executives say about artificial intelligence spending and whether corporate outlooks for the second half of the year are becoming more cautious, according to CNBC.
Oil prices edged higher as fighting in the Middle East continued overnight for a 10th consecutive day. West Texas Intermediate crude was trading at $83.90 a barrel, a gain of 0.8%, with Brent crude up 0.6% at $89.77. Oil had rallied on Monday after President Donald Trump used Truth Social to warn that Iran would be held responsible for the deaths of three U.S. service members.
The conflict, together with higher oil prices and new Chinese artificial intelligence models, has held back stock-market gains in recent weeks, according to The Wall Street Journal. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite have been flat for several weeks.
Diplomatic activity picked up Tuesday, with mediators proposing a 10-day ceasefire between the two sides. Oil prices pulled back slightly on the news, according to MarketWatch.
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