Key Points
- U.S. stock futures rose slightly ahead of major tech earnings and a Fed rate decision.
- All three major U.S. stock indexes hit record highs on Tuesday, boosted by hopes of a U.S.-China trade deal.
- The Federal Reserve is expected to cut rates by a quarter-point, with a focus on Chair Powell’s economic outlook.
- Nvidia is in the spotlight as Trump plans to discuss its AI chips with Xi Jinping, possibly easing export restrictions.
U.S. stock futures rose slightly on Wednesday as investors sought a clear direction. Major tech companies are about to report their earnings, and the Federal Reserve will announce its interest rate decision soon.
As of 07:28 AM ET, the S&P 500 is at 6,890.88 USD, up 0.23%. Similarly, the Nasdaq 100 at 26,012.16 USD, marking a more significant increase of 0.74%. The Dow 30 also ended the session in positive territory at 47,706.38 USD, up 0.34%.
News that President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping would meet later this week boosted spirits globally. Negotiators are close to finalizing a plan to avoid new tariffs and sanctions.
The Federal Reserve’s two-day policy meeting ends later today, and a quarter-point rate cut seems almost certain. A long government shutdown means the Fed lacks most economic data, including the important monthly jobs report, to judge the economy’s health. So, everyone will pay close attention to Chairman Jerome Powell’s comments to understand the central bank’s view of the economy and future monetary policy. People also wonder if the Fed will finally end its balance sheet reduction program, known as quantitative tightening.
In the corporate world, earnings reports are coming from tech giants Microsoft, Instagram-owner Meta Platforms, and Google-parent Alphabet after Wall Street closes. On Thursday, iPhone-maker Apple and e-commerce leader Amazon will release their results. Because of their huge size and influence on investors, these reports will greatly shape the direction of U.S. stocks for the rest of 2025.
Nvidia is also in the spotlight. Trump said he plans to discuss the company’s Blackwell artificial intelligence processors with Chinese leader Xi Jinping. This sparked talk that Washington might ease restrictions on chip exports to China.
Trump had hinted earlier that he might allow Nvidia to export a weaker version of its latest AI processor to China. This would be a big policy change and a possible breakthrough in U.S.-China tech relations. Nvidia shares went up in premarket trading, and such a move could make the chipmaker the first $5 trillion company.
Oil prices remained steady after recent drops, following an unexpected decline in U.S. oil inventories. Trading was quiet before the Fed meeting wrapped up. Brent futures gained 0.1% to $63.89 a barrel, and U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures traded 0.1% higher at $60.20 a barrel. The oil market fell for two straight days after reports suggested OPEC+ might increase production in December.
Data from the American Petroleum Institute on Tuesday showed U.S. crude inventories fell by over 4 million barrels last week, and gasoline inventories dropped by 6.35 million barrels. These larger-than-expected drops triggered a short-lived price increase yesterday and supported the market this morning.
