Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, USA, September 16, 2026. Jeenah Moon | ReutersUSA Stock futures were trading slightly higher early on Wednesday as oil prices and bond yields declined on hopes of a possible de-escalation of the U.S.-Iran war. S&P 500 futures added 0.11% and Nasdaq-100 futures rose 0.05% as of 4:31 a.m. ET. Futures linked to the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.08%. In regular trading on Tuesday, the Dow fell 0.4% and the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.5%, marking its fourth consecutive positive session. The technology index hit a new all-time intraday high and closed at a record. The S&P 500 ended marginally lower, but remains approximately 0.7% below its all-time high. In Asia-Pacific, South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.9%, while the Australian benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index rose slightly. Mainland China’s CSI 300 closed down 0.6%. Japan’s markets were closed for a holiday. Brett Ewing, chief market strategist at First Franklin Financial Services, told CNBC he thought the S&P 500 could reach 8,200 before the end of the year. “Our bet 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 the end of the year,” he said. President Donald Trump said Tuesday that U.S. and Iranian officials met for three hours during the annual meeting of the United Nations General Assembly in New York. He called it “a very good meeting.” Earlier Tuesday, in his speech to the UN, Trump said he has a “big decision” about whether to make a deal with Tehran or “wipe out” the country. Oil prices fell slightly, with both Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude oil falling about 1% each during the session. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Tuesday that the United States is deciding whether to ban exports of diesel, which reached a national average price of $6.53 a gallon, according to AAA. “Whether it is feasible in terms of 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. Through Wednesday, traders will be watching earnings results from General Mills, Paychex and HB Fuller.
