Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., Sept. 16, 2026.
Jeenah Moon | Reuters
U.S. equity futures were little changed early Wednesday, as oil prices fluctuated amid fresh uncertainty around the war between the U.S. and Iran.
S&P 500 futures were marginally higher as of 5 a.m. ET, while Nasdaq-100 futures dipped below the flatline. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were up 0.04%.
Futures tied to the major averages all pared back from earlier gains after Brent crude oil futures moved higher, erasing earlier losses seen overnight. Brent futures for November delivery were last seen trading around 0.4% higher at $99.60 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures were down 0.5% at $90.04 per barrel.
Crude oil futures
President Donald Trump said Tuesday that U.S. and Iranian officials met for three hours during the annual United Nations General Assembly gathering in New York. He described it as a “very good meeting.”
Earlier Tuesday in his address to the U.N., Trump said he has a “big decision” over whether to reach a deal with Tehran or “annihilate” the country.
In Tuesday’s regular trading, the Dow fell 0.4%, and the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.5%, marking its fourth positive session in a row. The tech-heavy index hit a new all-time intraday high and closed at a record. The S&P 500 finished marginally lower, but remains about 0.7% off from its all-time high.
Brett Ewing, chief market strategist at First Franklin Financial Services, told CNBC he thought the S&P 500 could hit 8,200 before the year is through.
“Our call at the beginning of the year was 8,000 on the S&P. We raised our target, believe it or not, in August to 8,200 by year-end,” he said.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Tuesday that the U.S. is deciding whether to prohibit exports of diesel, which reached a national average price of $6.53 per gallon, according to AAA.
“We’re examining whether it’s feasible in terms of the overall refining capacity and whether a full or partial ban would work,” Bessent said during a bilateral meeting between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the United Nations.
Going into Wednesday, traders will be watching earnings results from General Mills, Paychex and H.B. Fuller.
In Asia-Pacific, South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.9%, while Australia’s benchmark S&P/ASX 200 inched higher. Mainland China’s CSI 300 closed 0.6% lower. Japan’s markets were closed for a holiday.
European shares were broadly lower Wednesday morning, with the Stoxx 600 pulling back from earlier gains as Brent crude oil prices resumed their rally.
AI drone maker hits $6.4 billion valuation as Ukraine war spurs defense tech
AI drone maker Tekever on Wednesday said it had hit a $6.4 billion valuation, as Europe races to rearm amid the Ukraine war and mounting threats from Russia.
The Portuguese-British company, which raised a $580 million round, develops AI-powered autonomous systems including surveillance drones. Tekever says its drones have clocked more than 50,000 operational flight hours in Ukraine since 2022, when Russia’s full-scale invasion began.
University of California Investments and Baillie Gifford led the round, with Merlyn Advisors, Crescent Cove, Ventura Capital and Iberis Capital also contributing.
Tekever said in July that the U.K. Ministry of Defence had selected it to provide surveillance technology under a program worth up to £400 million (around $530 million) over 10 years.
Brent crude oil futures turn positive
International benchmark Brent crude futures for November delivery were last seen trading almost 0.6% higher at $99.74 a barrel, reversing early losses. U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures for November remained in negative territory, falling 0.3% to $90.19 per barrel.
Crude oil futures
— Chloe Taylor
Fed’s Collins warns inflation could stay ‘notably’ higher than 2% target
Boston Federal Reserve President Susan Collins has warned that there is “an increased likelihood” that inflation will stay “notably” above the Federal Reserve’s 2% target.
Explaining her reasoning for backing the Fed’s quarter-point interest rate hike last week, Collins wrote in a LinkedIn post that a “somewhat more restrictive federal funds rate will help ensure that inflation durably returns to target.”
Read the full story here.
— Mike Sheen
Bitcoin hovers above $86,000
Bitcoin was trading around $86,251.47 early Wednesday morning, after rising as high as $86,349.90 the previous day — its highest level since late January.
It marked a 0.2% intraday decline.
Ether was also down 0.2% Wednesday, trading at just over $2,748.
Ripple bucked the trend, adding 1.7% to trade at $1.61.
— Chloe Taylor
European stocks extend gains
European shares opened in positive territory on Wednesday, building on a winning session the previous day that saw the regional Stoxx 600 rise more than 1%.
At 8:20 a.m. in London (3:20 a.m. ET), the pan-European index was up by 0.2%.
Tech and banking stocks led gains in the region, while utilities stocks — which often rise during periods of risk-off sentiment — led losses in early trading.
— Chloe Taylor
South Korea’s Kospi gains 0.9%, China’s CSI 300 falls 0.6%
South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.90% to 7,080.92, while Australia’s benchmark S&P/ASX 200 inched higher to 8,765.30.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was down 1.01% in the last hour of trade on Wednesday, while mainland China’s CSI 300 closed 0.60% lower at 4,517.28.
Japan’s markets were closed for a holiday.
—Justina Lee
Treasury yields edge lower
Yields on U.S. Treasurys fell across the curve early Wednesday, as oil prices extended their decline.
As of 3 a.m. ET, the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury was 2 basis points lower at 4.947%. The 2-year Treasury yield fell 2 basis points to 4.758%, while the 30-year Treasury yield was 2 basis points lower at 5.287%.
One basis point is equal to 0.01%, and yields and prices move in opposite directions.
Yields moved lower in tandem with oil prices, which were on track for their sixth consecutive day of losses on Wednesday.
— Chloe Taylor
Oil prices set for longest downturn in over a year
Brent crude oil futures fell early Wednesday, extending losses to trade at $98.57 per barrel.
It marked a sixth straight day of declines, putting front-month contracts on track for their longest losing streak since August 2025.
Brent crude oil futures
— Chloe Taylor
South Korean solar stocks jump as curbs on Chinese sector expected to remain in place
Shares of South Korean solar companies Hanwha Solutions and OCI Holdings jumped more than 8% on Wednesday, as U.S. restrictions on Chinese solar products came into focus ahead of the Trump-Xi summit.
The two leaders are set to meet in Washington this week, with trade expected to be among the key issues discussed.
Hana Securities said it was highly unlikely that the U.S. would ease restrictions on Chinese solar products as part of the talks, arguing that Washington increasingly views solar as a strategic industry tied to national security.
“If the U.S. were to ease restrictions on Chinese solar products at the U.S.-China summit, it would effectively mean stepping back from efforts to build a domestic supply chain for a strategic national security asset,” analyst Yoon Jae-sung said in a note Wednesday.
—Jenny Lee
Oil falls after U.S. and Iran talk for hours at UN meeting
Oil fell Wednesday, amid optimism that supply disruptions would ease following U.S.-Iran talks which raised hopes of a diplomatic solution to the conflict in the Middle East.
Futures for international benchmark Brent crude for November delivery dropped 0.75% at $98.51 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures for November fell 1.03% at $89.59 per barrel.
President Donald Trump said Tuesday that U.S. officials had a “very good meeting” with Iran’s delegation and that it lasted about three hours. Earlier in his address to the U.N., Trump said he had a “big decision” over whether to reach a deal with Tehran or “annihilate” the country.
—Justina Lee
Mainland China and Hong Kong shares open lower
Mainland China stocks and Hong Kong shares opened lower, with investors continuing to keep watch for developments relating to Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s state visit to the U.S. this week.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index dropped 0.68%, while mainland China’s CSI 300 was 0.13% lower.
The losses in Hang Seng were led by financials and industrials sectors, down 0.35% and 0.16%, respectively.
—Justina Lee
Asia-Pacific markets open higher amid hopes of diplomatic solution to Mideast conflict
Asia-Pacific markets traded higher early Wednesday, amid lower oil prices following U.S.-Iran talks which raised hopes of a diplomatic solution to the Mideast conflict.
The Kospi added 1.79% at open, while the small-cap Kosdaq gained 0..84%.
Australia’s benchmark S&P/ASX 200 was 0.34% higher.
Japan’s markets are closed for a holiday.
—Justina Lee
Asia-Pacific markets set to open higher following talks between the U.S. and Iran
Asia-Pacific markets were set to open higher Wednesday, as signs of easing tensions in the Middle East helped to buoy investor sentiment following Iran-U.S. talks.
Hong Kong Hang Seng index futures were at 25,133, compared with the index’s last close of 25,087.75.
Futures for Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 last traded at 8,822, while the index closed at 8,757.80.
Japan’s markets are closed for a holiday.
President Donald Trump said that U.S. officials had a “very good meeting” with Iran’s delegation and that it lasted about three hours. That raised hopes that a diplomatic solution to the Mideast conflict may be on the horizon.
—Justina Lee
Volatility is relatively low given uncertain conditions, strategist says
At 14.21, the Cboe Volatility Index (VIX) is low considering uncertainty around the Iran war and a new interest rate hiking cycle from the Federal Reserve, Brett Ewing, chief market strategist at First Franklin Financial Services, said Tuesday.
“The VIX is pretty calm considering everything that’s been happening,” he said. “You’ve got a hawkish Fed … You’ve got an energy crisis going on.”
– Tobias Burns
The S&P 500 is close to a new record, relying on familiar leadership
When there’s a strong undertow near the beach, the move is to swim sideways, traveling parallel to the shore to reach a point beyond the narrow rip current’s pull.
The stock market seems to have executed such a cautious, patient maneuver. Months of bend-don’t-break action had kept the S&P 500 within sight of record highs while that undertow pulled at parts of the market most exposed to higher oil prices, rising interest rates and a tiring household sector: consumer cyclicals, industrial shares and, lately, the banks.
Meantime, semiconductor stocks and most of the mega-cap tech platforms were convalescing as AI-overspending fears eroded investor conviction and compressed valuations.
Was Monday’s propulsive rally, concentrated in the AI implementers of Big Tech, a sign that the market is revving to escape its summer-long stasis? Could both the “spenders” (hyperscalers) and the vendors (AI hardware providers) rally together for more than a couple of days?
Read more here.
— Michael Santoli
Stocks making the biggest moves in after hours
Several stocks were moving on news developments in extended trading.
Worthington Enterprises – The industrial manufacturing company surged about 16% on an encouraging outlook from leadership. CEO Joe Hayek said the company is seeing opportunities across its business, “including rapidly growing demand for our engineered [American Society of Mechanical Engineers] tanks used in liquid cooling systems for data centers.” First-quarter adjusted earnings and revenue surpassed the Street’s estimates, per LSEG.
KB Home – The homebuilder fell 2% after projections for fourth quarter deliveries came in below expectations. Housing gross margins for the current quarter are expected to range between 16% and 16.6%, while analysts polled by LSEG sought 17.2%.
IonQ – The quantum computing stock jumped 11% after IonQ said it tested the industry’s first real-time quantum error decoder. The new capability allows for quantum error correction across operations without slowing down execution time, the company said in an announcement.
—Darla Mercado
Stock futures open flat on Tuesday evening
U.S. equity futures were little changed at 6 p.m. in New York.
Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were down 15 points, or 0.03%. S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq-100 futures were marginally lower.
—Darla Mercado
