S&P 500, Nasdaq Futures Pull Back After Trump Wants 'Couple Days To Think' About Iran Ceasefire Deal: ASTS, DELL, BB, SMCI In Focus

• The proposed deal would guarantee unrestricted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, requiring Iran to remove all mines from the waterway within 30 days.
• On Thursday, U.S. benchmark indexes closed higher, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 hitting 52-week highs.
• Oil futures declined in after-hours trading amid a potential ceasefire report.

U.S. stock futures edged lower in overnight trading ahead of Friday as markets awaited an official update on the U.S.-Iran war even as reports emerged that the two countries had negotiated a 60-day extension to the ceasefire.

The Nasdaq 100 futures fell 0.16%, while the S&P 500 was down 0.03% and the Dow futures were flat as of 10.18 p.m ET.  

Among ETFs tracking benchmark indexes, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY), Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) and SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust (DIA) all traded in the red at the time of writing, with retail sentiment in the ‘bullish’ territory for SPY, in the ‘neutral’ territory for QQQ, and in the ‘bearish’ territory for DIA.

The iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (TLT) was trading up by about 0.19% amid ‘bullish’ sentiment.

How Did US Markets Fare On Thursday?

On Thursday, U.S. benchmark indexes were higher at the close. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 hit 52-week highs, closing up 0.91% and 0.84%, respectively, while the Dow Jones index added about 25 points to close up 0.05% higher.

US Market Drivers

U.S. stock markets rose to record highs on Thursday as reports emerged that the U.S. and Iran had neared a tentative deal to extend the ceasefire between the two nations by 60 days and were on track to discuss Tehran’s nuclear program.

According to a report from Axios, the deal was awaiting U.S. President Donald Trump’s final approval. Trump was briefed on the agreement but has not yet approved it, with one U.S. official saying the president wanted “a couple of days to think about it,” the report said.

Meanwhile, the report said that Iran had agreed to the deal; official confirmation is still pending. The proposed deal would guarantee unrestricted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, requiring Iran to remove all mines from the waterway within 30 days.

This move would mark the biggest diplomatic breakthrough since the war began, though broader negotiations over Trump’s nuclear demands are expected to continue. U.S. officials cautioned that earlier talks had also appeared close to success before repeatedly stalling.

Technology stocks once again outperformed the market, with cloud data platform Snowflake Inc. (SNOW) jumping more than 36% at market close on strong earnings results. Meanwhile, drone maker Ondas Inc. (ONDS) was up over 22% on Thursday. After the bell, Dell Technologies Inc. (DELL) posted first-quarter (Q1) earnings results that blew past expectations, sending its stock up by more than 38%.

On Thursday, April’s Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) Index advanced 3.8% on an annualized basis, largely in line with expectations. The U.S. economy grew at 1.6% in the first quarter, below earlier estimates, even as corporate profits grew.

Trending Stocks To Watch

AST SpaceMobile Inc. (ASTS): The satellite manufacturing company jumped onto the retail radar on Thursday after shares of the company rose to a yearly high in the intraday session as the optimism around space stocks continued to accelerate amid SpaceX’s massive IPO expected next month. However, ASTS stock slid nearly 7% in after-hours trading following the Blue Origin rocket's explosion ahead of its satellite launch.

Dell Technologies Inc. (DELL): Shares of the hardware maker jumped more than 38% in the after-hours session after the company’s first-quarter revenue soared more than 88%.

BlackBerry Ltd. (BB): Shares of the company jumped to a 52-week high, clocking five consecutive days in the green amid broader gains in the technology sector and continued optimism for its government-related cybersecurity certification.

Super Micro Computer Inc. (SMCI): Shares of Super Micro Computer climbed more than 8% at close and continued higher in extended trading hours after the company said its cooperation with Taiwanese authorities led to the arrest of three suspects tied to the smuggling of AI servers into China.

Global Market Trends

Oil futures declined in the overnight session amid reports of the potential ceasefire extension. Brent crude futures expiring in July were down more than %, trading at around $92.74 a barrel at the time of writing, while WTI crude futures expiring in June fell about 1.27% to $87.77 a barrel.

Meanwhile, yields on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.437%, while gold prices climbed to around $4,504.65 per ounce.

Robin Brooks, a Senior Fellow at The Brookings Institution and a former chief FX strategist and managing director at Goldman Sachs, believes that long-term yields will decline once the war ends.

“War with Iran and associated inflation fears are a temporary force for long-term yields to rise. As soon as the war ends, yields will fall,” he said in a post on X.

However, he added, “But central bank yield caps like those of the BoJ or ECB are a permanent force for yields to rise. Too much debt…”

Asian markets were all trading higher early Friday, with the KOSPI up about 2.5% at the time of writing. The Nikkei 225, Hang Seng and Australian indexes were also gaining at the open.

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