U.S. equity futures pointed higher on Tuesday as investors monitored developments surrounding the conflict with Iran and a recovery in artificial intelligence-related technology shares. Market sentiment was also boosted by news that OpenAI has confidentially filed for an initial public offering, while Applied Digital (NASDAQ:APLD) surged in premarket trading following a major long-term lease agreement.
Futures Advance Ahead of Key Inflation Data
By 03:28 ET (07:28 GMT), Dow futures were little changed, S&P 500 futures had risen 0.2%, and Nasdaq 100 futures were up 0.5%.
Wall Street delivered a mixed performance on Monday in what Deutsche Bank analysts described as a “cautious” session. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.2%, while the S&P 500 gained 0.3% and the Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.9%.
Technology shares led the advance, particularly semiconductor stocks, which rebounded after a sharp sell-off triggered by Broadcom’s (NASDAQ:AVGO) quarterly results late last week. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index jumped 5.61%, recovering roughly half of Friday’s losses.
Investors are now awaiting U.S. April trade data and May existing home sales figures. However, attention remains firmly focused on Wednesday’s release of the May Consumer Price Index, which could provide important clues about the Federal Reserve’s next policy moves.
Markets currently expect at least one additional interest-rate increase from the Fed this year, driven by concerns over inflationary pressures linked to the Iran conflict and continued strength in the U.S. labour market.
Trump Sees Potential Iran Agreement Within Weeks
According to Deutsche Bank, recent developments in the Middle East have followed a familiar pattern.
“[I]t seems the cycle of ‘near a deal, not near a deal, escalation, de escalation, maybe back near a deal’ continues,” the bank wrote, adding that it is currently “back in the ‘a deal is still possible’ camp.”
The comments followed announcements from Iran and Israel that both sides had halted attacks after a fresh exchange of strikes earlier in the week. Nevertheless, uncertainty remains, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledging to continue operations against Iran-backed Hezbollah forces in Lebanon.
President Donald Trump, who has been pushing for a negotiated end to the conflict, said he had held a “very good conversation” with Netanyahu. He added that Israel and Iran were expected to avoid further confrontation for at least a week and suggested that a “total victory” over Iran could be achieved within two weeks.
Oil prices moved lower in response, although Brent crude remained well above levels seen before the conflict began. Higher energy prices, largely driven by the prolonged closure of the Strait of Hormuz, continue to raise concerns about inflation and global economic growth.
OpenAI Joins Wave of Potential Mega IPOs
OpenAI announced that it has confidentially filed paperwork for a stock market listing, becoming the latest major artificial intelligence company preparing for a potential public debut.
In a statement, the company said “it may be a while” before it proceeds with an IPO, explaining that remaining private would make it easier to pursue several strategic objectives. OpenAI added that there is a “complicated set of tradeoffs” associated with going public that still need to be evaluated.
The company, led by CEO Sam Altman and best known for developing ChatGPT, has become one of the most prominent beneficiaries of the AI boom that has helped drive global equity markets to record highs.
The filing follows Anthropic’s own IPO submission last week. According to the Wall Street Journal, OpenAI executives are concerned that Anthropic, whose private-market valuation has reportedly surpassed OpenAI’s, could reach public markets first.
Meanwhile, SpaceX is expected to launch what could become the largest IPO in history, a transaction that may propel Elon Musk to become the world’s first trillionaire.
Samsung and SK Hynix Lead Chip Recovery
South Korea’s leading memory chip manufacturers rebounded strongly after heavy losses in the previous session.
SK Hynix (USOTC:HXSCL) surged more than 15%, recovering from an 8% decline and benefiting from a new long-term agreement with Nvidia to supply advanced memory products.
Samsung Electronics (USOTC:SSNHZ) rose almost 9% after dropping 10.2% on Monday.
Both companies had come under pressure amid concerns over higher U.S. interest rates, geopolitical tensions and questions about the long-term trajectory of AI-related spending following Broadcom’s guidance update.
Despite the recent volatility, Samsung and SK Hynix reached trillion-dollar market capitalisations in May, supported by expectations of robust demand for advanced AI memory chips.
Applied Digital Surges on Long-Term Data Centre Agreement
Applied Digital (NASDAQ:APLD) was one of the strongest movers in premarket trading, with shares jumping more than 11% after the company announced a 15-year lease agreement with a U.S.-based hyperscaler.
The contract is expected to generate approximately $5.2 billion in revenue and covers 210 megawatts of computing capacity at the company’s new Delta Forge 2 AI campus.
Applied Digital said around 70% of its contracted revenue is now tied to major U.S. hyperscale customers, reflecting growing demand from technology groups investing heavily in AI infrastructure.
Although the company did not disclose the identity of its customer, management stated that the agreement could generate as much as $12.7 billion over 30 years if renewed.