Investing.com – U.S. stock index futures edged higher Wednesday, steadying after fears of higher-for-longer interest rates sparked a series of steep losses.
At 06:35 ET (10:35 GMT, ) rose 180 points, or 0.5%, rose 22 points, or 0.5% and rose 60 points, or 0.3%.
Risk sentiment hit by Powell, Middle East tensions
The main Wall Street indices closed in a mixed fashion Tuesday, as some positive earnings were largely offset by Fed Chair Jerome Powell signaling that recent signs of sticky inflation gave the central bank less confidence to cut interest rates early.
Powell’s comments came following hotter-than-expected inflation and retail sales readings for March, which indicated that inflation was likely to remain well above levels the Fed was comfortable with. This also saw traders largely price out expectations for a June rate cut.
The fell 0.2%, the dropped 0.1%, while the rose 0.2%, the sole gainer among its peers, on strength in UnitedHealth (NYSE:), after the insurer clocked strong first-quarter earnings.
The main averages have sunk between 1.5% and 2.3% over the past five sessions, also hit by the heightened geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, after Iran launched a drone and missile strike against Israel.
Quarterly earnings season continues
The earnings season is set to continue on Wednesday, with results from the likes of U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:), healthcare giant Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:) and insurer Travelers (NYSE:) due.
United Airlines (NASDAQ:) will also be in the spotlight, with the carrier’s stock climbing sharply premarket after forecasting after the close Tuesday stronger-than-expected earnings in the current quarter, as well as a narrower-than-expected loss in the first quarter, on robust demand for travel.
On the flip side, JB Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:) stock fell premarket after the trucking firm missed estimates for first-quarter results, hurt by a decline in revenue in its biggest segment and pricing pressures at its brokerage business.
ASML (NASDAQ:) ADRs fell after the largest supplier of equipment to computer chip makers reported weaker than expected first-quarter new bookings, although sales to China held up despite U.S.-led restrictions.
Crude falls after rise in US stocks
Crude prices retreated Wednesday as a rise in U.S. commercial stockpiles created concerns about future demand.
By 06:35 ET, the U.S. crude futures traded 0.8% lower at $84.69 a barrel, while the Brent contract dropped 0.8% to $89.32 per barrel.
The suggested that U.S crude inventories rose just over 4 million barrels last week, much more than expectations for a build of 600,000 barrels.
The build, released on Tuesday, came after a 3 million barrel rise in the prior week, and was largely driven by U.S. production remaining at record highs above 13 million barrels per day.
The official U.S. inventory data, from the , is due later in the day.
Oil prices soared last week to the highest levels since October, as the prospect of a bigger conflict in the Middle East, especially between Iran and Israel, sparked bets of supply disruptions in the region.
(Ambar Warrick contributed to this article.)
