Traders work in the S&P options pit at open of trading at the Cboe Global Markets exchange on March 04, 2026 in Chicago, Illinois. I
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S&P 500 futures ticked higher Wednesday night after major averages posted gains in the previous session, as investor jitters around the U.S.-Iran war eased.
Futures tied to the broad market index climbed 0.2%, and Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.3%. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures added 9 points, or 0.02%.
Stocks rebounded in Wednesday’s regular session, buoyed by gains in technology and semiconductor giants. The Dow jumped about 238 points, or 0.5%, ending a three-day losing run. The S&P 500 closed up 0.8%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 1.3%.
Nvidia shares rose more than 1%. Chipmakers Broadcom, Micron Technology, Advanced Micro Devices and Intel also notched gains. Consumer staples, energy and materials were the only S&P 500 sectors that posted losses on the day.
“Things are changing around the edges. We have a geopolitical shock, obviously, and we’re still parsing that in terms of how it could impact the risk premium for equities,” said Bank of America Securities head of U.S. equity and quantitative strategy Savita Subramanian on CNBC’s “Closing Bell: Overtime.”
“But beyond that, I think what we’re seeing is the tide slowly going out for some of the beneficiaries of a very low interest rate environment,” she added.
Oil prices stabilized on Wednesday after this week’s surge, with U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures settling up 0.13% and international benchmark Brent crude oil futures ending the session at the flatline.
Fears of disruption to regional oil and gas supplies subsided after President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that the U.S. is preparing to provide risk insurance and escorts to ships in the Persian Gulf in an effort to ensure traffic can move through the Strait of Hormuz. To be sure, the White House would not provide a timeline for when the strait, which is responsible for roughly 20% of the world’s oil supply, will be safe for oil tankers.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Wednesday in a briefing with reporters that the U.S. is “winning decisively” in its conflict with Iran and that more forces are arriving to the region.
Separately, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Wednesday that Trump’s recently announced 15% global tariff will likely go into effect this week.
Investors are awaiting earnings results due Thursday morning from retailers Kroger, Burlington and BJ’s Wholesale. Costco and Marvell Technology will report results after market close.
On the economic front, weekly jobless claims are also due Thursday.