U.S. stock index futures pointed to a stronger start on Monday, with technology shares expected to drive early gains after last week’s broad sell-off.
Nasdaq 100 futures climbed 1.2% ahead of the opening bell, signalling renewed buying interest in the technology sector after the Nasdaq fell more than 4% over the previous week.
Investor sentiment also received a boost after South Korea announced a US$576 billion investment programme focused on semiconductors and artificial intelligence. The initiative, backed by Samsung and SK Hynix, is designed to reinforce the country’s leadership in the global chip industry.
Middle East Developments Remain in Focus
Markets also continued to monitor geopolitical developments after reports that the United States and Iran had agreed to suspend hostilities once again following military exchanges over the weekend.
U.S. President Donald Trump said in a post on Truth Social that Iran had requested new talks, adding that negotiations are expected to take place in Doha, Qatar.
“Once again, the familiar pattern has played out: renewed exchanges between the U.S. and Iran over the weekend briefly unsettled markets, only for reports of both sides returning to negotiations to restore confidence by Monday morning,” said Daniela Hathorn, Senior Market Analyst at Capital.com.
“That confidence, however, may be getting ahead of the facts,” she added. “While markets appear comfortable pricing a relatively swift normalization of energy markets, there remain clear signs that negotiations are far from straightforward.”
Major Indexes Ended Friday Little Changed
Wall Street finished Friday’s session with only modest losses after recovering from early weakness, as the major indexes spent much of the day moving on either side of the unchanged mark.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 44.51 points, or 0.1%, to 51,876.11. The Nasdaq Composite lost 60.99 points, or 0.2%, to close at 25,297.62, while the S&P 500 eased 3.47 points, or 0.1%, to 7,354.02.
For the week as a whole, the Dow gained 0.6%, while the S&P 500 fell 2.0% and the Nasdaq recorded a steeper decline of 4.6%.