Wall Street futures inch higher as investors weigh Middle East unrest

2026-03-13 - 13:04

Wall Street’s main indexes were still set for their third week in the red. (EPA Images pic) NEW YORK: US stock index futures inched up in choppy trading today ahead of reports on economic growth and inflation, while a widening conflict in the Middle East threatened to stoke price pressures. Wall Street’s main indexes were still set for their third week in the red and investors also monitored developments in the private credit market. Markets will get an insight into the health of the US economy as the January releases for durable goods and personal consumption expenditures are due at 8.30am, along with the second estimate of fourth-quarter (Q4) gross domestic product. Reports on job openings in January and the University of Michigan’s initial estimate on consumer sentiment in March will follow at 10am. Crude prices hovered near US$100 a barrel as hostilities in the Middle East showed few signs of easing despite the Trump administration’s assurances of a swift resolution. Efforts such as the International Energy Agency’s record emergency oil releases, and the US 30-day license for countries to buy Russian oil and petroleum products stranded at sea failed to bring down the surge in costs. “Beyond energy, what now concerns economists is the potential impact on the entire global supply chain, because what transits through the Strait of Hormuz does not stop at oil: a significant share of global industrial production indirectly depends on this corridor,” said John Plassard, head of investment strategy at Cite Gestion. “In reality, if this situation were to persist, a large part of the global economy could quickly come under pressure,” Plassard said. Spiking costs have complicated the work of the Federal Reserve, which also faces a weakening jobs market. Interest-rate futures and rising short-term Treasury yields suggest hawkish monetary policy in the months ahead. The central bank is expected to meet next week and is likely to leave interest rates unchanged. Traders now see only one 25-basis-point interest rate cut this year, according to LSEG-compiled data, compared with two before the war began on Feb 28. At 7.11am, Dow E-minis were up 127 points, or 0.27%, S&P 500 E-minis were up 17.25 points, or 0.27% and Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 57 points, or 0.23%. Wall Street’s fear gauge, the CBOE volatility index, wavered and was last down 0.81 points at 26.48, while futures tied to the rate-sensitive Russell 2000 index were 0.2% lower. The financials-heavy Dow has been hit the hardest among peers over the past three weeks, putting it on track for its biggest monthly losses since December 2024. Credit quality worries deepened this week after Morgan Stanley halted redemptions at one of its private credit funds, following similar moves by BlackRock and Blue Owl in recent weeks. JPMorgan Chase also restricted lending to private credit players, while Blackstone faced a surge in redemptions. Blue Owl’s shares were marginally lower in premarket trading, while the others were little changed. Travel stocks, hit the most by the war and higher energy costs, were marginally lower. Airlines Alaska and American slipped about 0.2% each, while Carnival and Norwegian Cruise slipped about 0.8% each. Design software maker Adobe fell 8% as longtime CEO Shantanu Narayen will leave his role once a successor is appointed, renewing worries around its strategy as it grapples with AI disruption. Cybersecurity firm SentinelOne fell 5.3% after forecasting quarterly profit below estimates. Megacap Meta slipped 1% as a report said it postponed the release of its artificial intelligence model “Avocado” to at least May, from this month.