- Investors await the Federal Reserve’s rate decision later today.
- Geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and bearish retail sentiment continue to cloud the near-term outlook.
- Chipmaker Micron (MU) reports earnings after the bell today.
U.S. stock futures edged higher early Wednesday as investors geared up for the Federal Reserve’s interest rate decision later today. Traders have priced in a status quo and are also monitoring the escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. Iran launched retaliatory missile strikes against Israel and U.S. assets following the death of security chief Ali Larijani.
As of 4:00 a.m. ET on Wednesday, Nasdaq futures gained 0.6%, S&P and Dow futures rose 0.5% each, and Russell 2000 futures were up 1%.
Meanwhile, retail sentiment toward the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY), an exchange-traded fund that tracks the S&P 500 Index, remained ‘extremely bearish, and the Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) ETF, which tracks the Nasdaq-100 Index, has remained ‘bearish’ amid high trading volume.
Trending Stocks To Watch
Nvidia (NVDA): CEO Jensen Huang has reportedly confirmed that they have resumed selling H200 processors to approved customers in China.
Coupang (CPNG): Additionally, at the Nvidia AI Conference, Coupang announced the creation of an ‘AI Factory’ powered by NVIDIA’s DGX SuperPOD.
Microsoft (MSFT) and Amazon Inc (AMZN): Microsoft is reportedly weighing legal action over a $50 billion deal between Amazon and OpenAI. It claims that the deal violates its exclusive cloud partnership with the ChatGPT creator.
Micron Technology (MU): The chipmaker is on the retail radar ahead of its earnings report scheduled for later today.
Lululemon (LULU): Stock extended losses in early pre-market trade on Wednesday as weak 2026 guidance weighed on investor sentiment.
Swarmer (SWMR): A day after its stellar market debut, the drone software firm surged 66% in early pre-market trade.
SoFi Technologies (SOFI): It has issued a rebuttal to a Muddy Waters short-seller report, calling the claims ‘factually inaccurate’ and threatening legal action.
The Trade Desk (TTD): Downgraded to Hold by Stifel with a price target cut to $26. Reports indicate Publicis has stopped recommending the platform following a failed service agreement audit.
Other tickers trending on Stocktwits at the time of writing included Coinbase Global (COIN), Starfighters Space Inc (FJET), Monster Beverage (MNST), and Oklo Inc (OKLO).
Other Catalysts To Watch
On the economic front, all eyes are on Jerome Powell and the Federal Reserve’s rate decision at 2 p.m. ET, followed by the press conference. Beyond that, investors will be tracking core PPI data at 8:30 am, followed by factory orders at 10:00 am.
On earnings radar, watch out for quarterly reports from General Mills (GIS), Macy’s (M), and Red Cat Holdings (RCAT), among others.
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