Futures Pointing To Initial Strength On Wall Street

(RTTNews) - The major U.S. index futures are currently pointing to a higher open on Tuesday, with stocks likely to extend the rebound seen during the previous session.

The upward momentum on Wall Street comes as traders attempt to shrug off the ongoing volatility in the price of crude oil due to the escalating conflict in the Middle East.

Crude oil for April delivery is surging by more than 2 percent on the day after plunging by more than 5 percent during Monday's trading.

The rebound by the price of crude oil comes after Iran launched a series of attacks on the United Arab Emirates, targeting Dubai's international airport and the Fujairah oil port, marking a sharp escalation in the ongoing conflict.

A drone attack has sparked a fire at the Fujairah Oil Industry Zone in the UAE, but reports suggest that there were no casualties. The energy facility is located about 93 miles east of Dubai.

Loud explosions and air defense interceptions were reported across the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar today as the U.S.-Israel war with Iran entered day 18.

The Israeli military said it had begun a "wide-scale wave of strikes" across Iran's capital and was also stepping up strikes on Iran-backed Hezbollah targets in Lebanon.

Meanwhile, several U.S. allies, including Germany, Spain, Italy, Australia and Japan have declined President Donald Trump's request to secure the Strait of Hormuz, a vital artery for a fifth of global energy shipments.

After moving notably lower over the past few sessions, stocks showed a strong move back to the upside during trading on Monday. The major averages all moved notably higher, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq leading the way.

The major averages ended the day off their highs of the session but still sharply higher. The Nasdaq surged 268.82 points or 1.2 percent to 22,374.18, the S&P 500 jumped 67.19 points or 1.0 percent to 6,699.38 and the Dow advanced 387.94 points or 0.8 percent to 46,946.41.

The rebound on Wall Street came amid a sharp pullback by the price of crude oil, with crude for April delivery plunging by nearly 5 percent after soaring by 8.6 percent last week.

Oil prices are giving back ground after President Donald Trump called on other countries to help secure the Strait of Hormuz.

"I'm demanding that these countries come in and protect their own territory, because it is their territory. It's the place from which they get their energy," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday. "And they should come and they should help us protect it."

"Why are we maintaining the Hormuz Strait when it's really there for China and many other countries?" he asked. "Why aren't they doing it?"

The pullback by oil prices helped ease recent inflation concerns, although the Federal Reserve is still widely expected to leave interest rates when it meets in the coming days.

Bargain hunting may also have contributed to the strength on Wall Street after the major averages dropped their lowest closing levels in over three months last Friday.

In U.S. economic news, a report released by the Fed showed industrial production in the U.S. increased by slightly more than expected in the month of February.

The Fed said industrial production rose by 0.2 percent in February after climbing by 0.7 percent in January. Economists had expected industrial production to inch up by 0.1 percent.

Computer hardware stocks turned in some of the market's best performances on the day, with the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index surging by 2.6 percent.

Networking and semiconductor stocks also saw significant strength, contributing to the jump by the tech-heavy Nasdaq.

Outside of the tech sector, steel stocks also showed a strong move to the upside, driving the NYSE Arca Steel Index up by 1.7 percent.

Airline, brokerage and housing stocks also saw notable strength, moving higher along with most of the other major sectors.

Commodity, Currency Markets

Crude oil futures are jumping $2 to $95.50 a barrel after plunging $5.21 to $93.50 a barrel on Monday. Meanwhile, after tumbling $59.50 to $5,002.20 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are rising $20.40 to $5,022.60 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 159.03 yen compared to the 159.06 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Monday. Against the euro, the dollar is trading at $1.1521 compared to yesterday's $1.1503.

Asia

Asian stocks ended mixed on Tuesday as oil prices fluctuated and U.S. President Donald Trump sought to delay his upcoming trip to China.

Oil prices were up nearly 3 percent in Asian trading after Iran set a massive natural gas field in the United Arab Emirates ablaze, adding to anxiety over energy disruptions.

The U.S. dollar Index ticked higher, and gold held steady above $5,000 an ounce as investors braced for a slew of central bank decisions, including the U.S. Federal Reserve.

China's Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.9 percent to 4,049.91 after Trump said that he is planning to delay a high stakes visit to China later in March by about a month because of the Middle East conflict.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index ended up 0.1 percent at 25,868.54, giving up some early gains.

Japanese markets ended on a flat note as the yen remained weak despite verbal warnings from authorities to intervene in currency markets.

Just days before the policy decision, Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda said today that underlying inflation was gradually accelerating toward the central bank's 2 percent target because of rising oil prices.

The Nikkei 225 Index finished marginally lower at 53,700.39, while the broader Topix Index ended 0.5 percent higher at 3,627.07. Among the top gainers, Kawasaki Kisen surged 6.3 percent, Daiichi Sankyo added 5.9 percent and Taiyo Yuden advanced 5.1 percent.

Seoul stocks rallied as large-cap tech shares surged on optimism about the artificial intelligence (AI) sector. The Kospi Index jumped 1.6 percent to 5,640.48.

Heavyweight Samsung Electronics climbed 2.8 percent after Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said he expects purchase orders between Blackwell and Vera Rubin chips to reach $1 trillion through 2027.

Australian markets eked out modest gains to snap a three-day losing streak after the Reserve Bank lifted its cash rate by 25 basis points in a split decision, arguing that the decision was more about the timing rather than the direction of policy settings.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index rose by 0.4 percent to 8,614.30, led by banks, gold and mining stocks. The broader All Ordinaries Index settled 0.3 percent higher at 8,819.40.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 Index inched up by 0.1 percent to 13,182.23 after three consecutive sessions of declines.

Europe

European stocks have moved mostly higher during trading on Tuesday even as oil prices resume their rise amid fears over constrained supply.

U.S. President Donald Trump criticized Western allies for rebuffing his request to send warships to escort tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, as the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran entered day 18.

Iran has launched a series of attacks on the United Arab Emirates (UAE), targeting Dubai's international airport and the Fujairah oil port, marking a sharp escalation in the ongoing conflict.

While the German DAX Index is up by 0.6 percent, the French CAC 40 Index and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index are both up by 0.8 percent.

Trustpilot Group share have soared in London. After reporting strong full-year 2025 results, the online review platform said it expects revenue to grow "in the high teens" on a constant currency basis in 2026.

German life-science company Sartorius has also shown a strong move to the upside after setting new mid-term financial targets.

Industrial components group Essentra has also jumped after reporting full-year 2025 results in line with analyst expectations.

Meanwhile, Close Brothers has moved sharpy lower. After reporting a narrower loss in the first half of its financial year, the lender said it plans to cut 600 jobs by 2027 as part of its ongoing cost-reduction efforts.

U.S. Economic News

The National Association of Realtors is due to release its report on pending home sales in the month of February at 10 am ET. Pending home sales are expected to slump by 1.0 percent in February after falling by 0.8 percent in January.

At 1 pm ET, the Treasury Department is scheduled to announce the results of this month's auction of $13 billion worth of twenty-year bonds.