Dow, S&P 500 Futures, Nasdaq Ease After Historic H1 Rally As Markets Brace For Warsh’s Comments: NKE, BE, FCEL, MXL Stocks In Focus

• The Dow posted its best first-half performance in five years, gaining 8.85% in the first six months of 2026.
• On the geopolitical front, reports suggest that U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner met Qatar’s prime minister in Doha after President Donald Trump said Iran had requested talks. 
• Oil futures climbed higher in Tuesday’s overnight trade as markets watch the U.S.-Iran developments closely.

U.S. stock futures retreated in the overnight session late Tuesday after posting a strong quarter despite the war with Iran. The Dow posted its best first half since 2021, while the small-cap Russell 2000 posted its strongest H1 since 1991.

Meanwhile, Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh is scheduled to speak at the European Central Bank Forum on Central Banking on Wednesday.

Dow futures were down 0.22%, S&P 500 futures fell 0.13%, and the Nasdaq 100 futures slumped 0.08% at 9:30 PM EDT.  

Among ETFs tracking benchmark indexes, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY), the Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) and the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust (DIA) were trading lower at the time of writing.

The iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (TLT) was trading down 0.68% amid ‘neutral’ sentiment.

How Did US Markets Fare On Tuesday?

Tuesday’s session marked the last trading day of the quarter and the first half of 2026. All three benchmark indexes closed higher, with the Nasdaq Composite leading the gains after adding nearly 400 points to close up 1.52%. The blue-chip Dow index gained 0.26% at close, while the S&P 500 jumped 0.79%.

US Market Drivers

U.S. stock markets posted a strong second quarter despite geopolitical upheaval and uncertainty surrounding the U.S.-Iran war.

For the quarter ended June, the S&P 500 gained 14.87%, while the Dow rose 12.9% and the Nasdaq jumped 21.41% in the same period.

“What a quarter for stock investors! Brushing aside war and other worries, the Nasdaq gained 21% and the S&P 15%, their largest quarterly returns in six years,” said economist Mohamed A. El-Erian in a post on X.

Meanwhile, the Dow posted its best first-half performance in five years, gaining 8.85% in the first six months of 2026. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq also climbed 9.55% and 12.79%, respectively, for the same period. Most notably, the Russell 2000, which tracks small-cap stocks in the U.S., surged 21.86% to clock its best first-half performance in two and a half decades.

Technology stocks and AI trades dominated the three months, although sentiment dropped towards the end of June following hawkish signals from the Federal Reserve.

According to a CNBC report, a blockbuster chip rally added about $2 trillion in combined market capitalization to Micron Technology Inc. (MU), Intel Corp. (INTC) and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) in the second quarter of 2026.

“The rotation out of AI hyperscalers into AI enablers has shifted investors’ euphoria into semis, driving spectacular rallies,” Barclays analyst Anshul Gupta said in a note on Tuesday, as per the report.

On Tuesday, markets edged higher, partly buoyed by continued strength in chip stocks and technology shares. AI darling Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) rose more than 2.6% at close, while AMD rallied over 7% and INTC gained 6% at close.

On the geopolitical front, reports suggest that U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner met Qatar’s prime minister in Doha after President Donald Trump said Iran had requested talks. However, Tehran denied that any meeting with U.S. officials is currently scheduled, while discussions on Iran’s frozen assets and the Strait of Hormuz continue.

Meanwhile, the top focus on Wednesday is likely to be Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh’s speech at the European Central Bank Forum on Central Banking in Sintra, Portugal. While Warsh is not expected to provide forward guidance in his address, investors will be watching for cues on inflation and the economy, especially amid speculations of an interest rate hike later this year.

Markets will also be watching out for the June non-farm payroll (NFP) report and the ISM Manufacturing PMI due later this week.

U.S. stock and bond markets will be closed on Friday, July 3, in observance of Independence Day.

Trending Stocks To Watch

Nike Inc. (NKE): Shares of the sportswear giant fell more than 3% in after-hours trading after the company reported a decline in China sales, overshadowing better-than-expected fourth-quarter (Q4) results. The company’s net income jumped more than 400% while revenue came in at $10.97 billion, topping analyst expectations.

Bloom Energy Corp. (BE): Bloom’s shares surged more than 10% on Tuesday and continued to rally overnight after the company announced an expanded partnership with Brookfield for AI infrastructure buildout.

Fuelcell Energy Inc. (FCEL): The BE competitor continued its monster rally on Tuesday, jumping nearly 21% as investors turned optimistic over the company’s $49 million financing package to support the deployment of five 2.8-megawatt (MW) energy blocks in South Korea.

MaxLinear Inc. (MXL): Shares of the company jumped more than 18% on confidence in its expanding data center business and long-term infrastructure growth strategy. Stifel recently raised its price target on MXL to $110 from $105 and reiterated a “Buy” rating.

Global Market Trends

Crude oil prices climbed higher late Tuesday. At the time of writing, Brent crude futures expiring in August were trading at around $72.92 per barrel. Meanwhile, WTI crude futures expiring in August gained about 0.6% to trade at $69.94 per barrel.

Yields on the 10-year Treasury were at 4.457% at the time of writing, while spot gold prices declined to around $3,978.70 an ounce.

Asian markets traded mixed at the open on Wednesday. South Korea's KOSPI and China’s SSE Composite index declined at the time of writing, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 edged higher. Meanwhile, Australian stocks were lower at the open.

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