U.S. Stock Futures Rise Ahead of Powell Speech; Focus on Economic and Corporate Developments

U.S. stock index futures advanced on Wednesday, with investors closely eyeing Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s upcoming address for insights into the central bank’s interest rate trajectory.

Stock Futures Performance
As of 05:40 ET (10:40 GMT):

• Dow Jones Futures: Up 195 points (0.4%)
• S&P 500 Futures: Gained 13 points (0.2%)
• Nasdaq 100 Futures: Climbed 115 points (0.6%)

This follows a mixed performance on Tuesday, with the S&P 500 up 0.1% and the Nasdaq Composite rising 0.4% to record highs, while the Dow Jones fell 0.2%.

Focus on Powell’s Speech and Interest Rate Policy
Fed Chair Jerome Powell is scheduled to speak later in the day, with markets anticipating clarity on the Fed’s near-term policy direction ahead of its final meeting of 2024. A 25 basis-point rate cut is widely expected during this meeting.

However, the long-term outlook remains clouded, with inflation concerns re-emerging due to above-target levels and President-elect Donald Trump’s proposed protectionist policies, including potential new tariffs on imports. Analysts at Goldman Sachs have warned that such tariffs could delay inflation’s return to the Fed’s 2% target.

Beyond Powell’s remarks, investors are gearing up for Friday’s nonfarm payrolls report, which could offer further evidence of labor market strength.

Corporate Highlights: Salesforce Shines
Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) shares surged over 10% in premarket trading after the cloud software giant surpassed Q3 revenue expectations and raised the lower end of its annual revenue forecast. The results were driven by robust enterprise demand for its cloud portfolio.

Additionally, earnings from companies like Foot Locker (NYSE:FL), Dollar Tree (NASDAQ:DLTR), and Chewy (NYSE:CHWY) will also be in focus.

Energy Markets Gain Amid Geopolitical Tensions
Oil prices rose slightly, continuing their upward momentum from Tuesday, supported by heightened geopolitical risks and anticipation of the OPEC+ meeting on Thursday.

As of 05:40 ET:

• WTI Crude Futures: Up 0.1% to $69.98 per barrel
• Brent Crude: Gained 0.1% to $73.66 per barrel

Geopolitical concerns, including tensions in the Middle East, South Korea’s partial martial law declaration, and conflicts in Ukraine and Syria, underpinned crude prices. However, gains were tempered by unexpected increases in U.S. oil inventories, as shown by industry data earlier in the week