Investing.com – Futures linked to the main U.S. averages seek direction, ahead of a bevy of critical technology sector earnings in the coming days that could help determine the outlook for the artificial intelligence boom. Elsewhere, the Federal Reserve is due to begin its two-day policy meeting, with officials likely to be paying close attention to inflationary pressures brought on by an Iran war-linked energy shock. President Donald Trump is set to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as fighting in a conflict started by a joint U.S.-Israeli assault on Iran in late February remains paused.
1. Futures mixed
U.S. stock futures hovered around both sides of the flatline on Tuesday, as investors geared up for a raft of corporate earnings this week and assessed ongoing developments in the Iran war.
By 02:43 ET (07:43 GMT), had risen by 41 points, or 0.1%, S&P 500 futures had slipped by 20 points, or 0.3%, and had declined by 264 points, or 0.9%.
The main averages on Wall Street were mixed at the end of trading on Monday. A sharp fall in oil prices and U.S. Treasury yields because of a pause to fighting between the U.S. and Iran boosted equities, but analysts noted lingering worries over an energy-fueled inflation wave and a hawkish turn in Federal Reserve interest rate policy.
Meanwhile, concerns continue to swirl around the sustainability of massive expenditures on artificial intelligence infrastructure — a trend that may receive a stern test when several technology sector giants report quarterly returns on Wednesday and Thursday.
’s shares retreated following a report that the AI chip titan could provide a financial guarantee of around $250 billion to backstop a huge OpenAI data center project. A blockbuster debut from Chinese memory chip maker CXMT, as well as news that iPhone-maker has been urging the Trump administration to allow it to use Chinese chips in some of its products, also drove competition fears for American chip stocks.
, a tracker of the chip industry, declined 2.2%. According to the Wall Street Journal, every stock in the index closing below its respective 50-day moving average for the first time since April 2025.
2. , among upcoming earnings
Attention now turns to a parade of company earnings this week. Before the start of the U.S. trading on Tuesday, results from the food and beverage maker and plane manufacturer Boeing will be in focus.
Investors will likely be keen to see how the Iran conflict has impacted the outlook for consumer goods firms like Coca-Cola, and keeping an eye out for signs of progress in a turnaround effort at Boeing.
After the bell, payments firm Visa will step into the spotlight, with the numbers potentially offering a glimpse at how consumer spending is holding up amid the economic uncertainty caused by the Middle East hostilities.
Commentary from data-storage hardware provider could also provide insight into the state of what has been strong AI-driven demand.
But the main earnings releases of the week are set to come from , , Apple and . These firms are so-called AI “hyperscalers” who have laid out plans to spend billions of dollars on the data centers and chips underpinning AI systems.
3. Fed meeting to begin
Beyond earnings, a fresh Fed interest rate decision on Wednesday will dominate the conversation in markets.
The central bank is due to start its two-day meeting on Tuesday, with officials facing what analysts have described as unusual uncertainty over the appropriate trajectory for rates.
Inflation data for June came in softer than expected, but on-again, off-again fighting in the Middle East — and fluctuations in oil prices — have kept expectations for ongoing price pressures in play. At the same time, the labor market has appeared to march along in an environment of low hiring but muted dismissals.
In theory, raising borrowing costs can help put a lid on inflation, albeit at the risk of weighing on the economy and labor market.
Wagers are now a placing a two-in-three chance that the Fed will opt to keep rates steady at 3.5% to 3.75%, while there is a one-in-three probability of a 25-basis point rate hike, CME FedWatch showed.
4. Trump to host Netanyahu at White House
U.S. President Donald Trump will host Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House on Wednesday, with the two leaders confronting a key juncture in the Iran war.
The U.S. and Israel began a joint assault on Iran in late February, beginning a now six-month old campaign that has roiled global financial markets and is threatening to widen into a broader regional conflict.
Trump has been at odds with Netanyahu, recently holding a contentious phone call in June which magnified strains over Israel’s attacks on targets on Iran-backed Hezbollah militants in Lebanon. But Netanyahu may be looking to mend his ties with Trump, especially as looks for the president’s support for his re-election bid ahead of a key vote in October, Reuters reported.
There is no end in sight at the moment in the Middle East war, despite the U.S. and Iran pausing tit-for-tat bombardments in recent days. Trump said on Monday that the U.S. was engaged in “good talks” with Tehran and hinted at the chance of a new ceasefire deal, although he flagged that strikes could start again should the negotiations falter.
5. Chip sell-off in Asia
South Korea’s fell sharply on Friday, hit by deep losses in local chipmaking stocks amid growing concerns over bloated AI-fueled valuations and outsized spending on the technology.
Export-heavy sectors were also spooked by the U.S. announcing a new 12.5% tariff on South Korea and a host of other countries.
The KOSPI slumped over 10% to end at 6,023.66 points, even after Seoul said the U.S. had agreed to honor an earlier trade deal that would cap tariffs on the country to 15%.
Chipmakers were the biggest weight on the KOSPI, with SK Hynix Inc () and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd () tumbling by 14.65% and 13.39%, respectively. Samsung and SK Hynix have been particular beneficiaries of the AI boom, growing exponentially in the past year on runaway demand for memory.