(Reuters) -U.S. stock index futures rose on Wednesday as chipmakers rallied after ASML’s results, while investors awaited earnings from Bank of America and Morgan Stanley following strong reports from lenders that helped lift markets in the prior session.
Shares of Bank of America and Morgan Stanley rose 0.7% and 1.5% respectively premarket ahead of their third-quarter results that would round up results from major lenders.
A day earlier, a slew of lenders including Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase reported solid performance in investment banking and predicted that business would continue to boom.
Shares of U.S. chipmakers rose premarket after ASML reported third-quarter orders and operating income above market expectations. ASML’s U.S. shares were up 3.6%.
Micron Technology rose 2.9%, Advanced Micro Devices gained 3.2%, while Intel and Nvidia added 2.1% and 2.4% respectively.
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Tuesday left the door open to rate cuts by saying the U.S. labor market remained mired in low-hiring, low-firing doldrums.
He said the absence of official economic data due to the government shutdown has not prevented policymakers from being able to assess the economic outlook, at least for now.
“Powell highlighted the rising downside risks to the U.S. labor market, which essentially prompted the September rate cut … investors remain confident that the October 29 rate cut is a rather safe bet at this stage,” Achilleas Georgolopoulos, senior market analyst at XM, said in a note.
Markets are currently priced for a quarter-point cut at the October 28-29 Fed gathering and another at the next meeting in December, followed by three more cuts next year, according to LSEG data.
At 5:25 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were up 155 points, or 0.33%, S&P 500 E-minis were up 35.75 points, or 0.53%, and Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 184.25 points, or 0.74%.
A slate of Fed speakers including governors Stephen Miran and Christopher Waller, Atlanta President Raphael Bostic and Kansas City boss Jeffrey Schmid are set to speak throughout the day.
Meanwhile, President Donald Trump on Tuesday said Washington was considering cutting some trade ties with China, including in relation to cooking oil. That came after the two countries began imposing tit-for-tat port fees, adding to concerns about the China-U.S. trade war.
The International Monetary Fund marginally lifted its 2025 global growth forecast on Tuesday but warned that a renewed U.S.-China trade war could slow output significantly.
U.S.-listed shares of gold miners gained after bullion prices surged past $4,200 an ounce for the first time.
Newmont, AngloGold Ashanti and Harmony Gold gained 1.9%, 1.3%, and 2.4% respectively.
(Reporting by Sukriti Gupta in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)
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