US stock futures fall after Putin raises geopolitical tensions
US stock index futures fell Tuesday, with geopolitical tensions raised by hawkish comments about nuclear weapons from Russian President Vladimir Putin.
At 06:30 ET (11:30 GMT), Dow Jones Futures fell 265 points, or 0.6%, S&P 500 Futures dropped 25 points, or 0.4%, and Nasdaq 100 Futures fell 75 points, or 0.4%.
Wall Street indexes rose on Monday, recouping some of last week’s losses, helped by a strong rally from electric vehicle maker Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA ).
The S&P 500 rose 0.4% and the NASDAQ Composite rose 0.6%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average lagged, falling 0.1%.
Wall Street indexes had fallen from record highs last week as optimism over a second Donald Trump presidency cooled, and as strong inflation readings and less dovish Federal Reserve signals sparked some doubts over just how much interest rates will fall in the coming months. Putin alters nuclear strike threshold
Russian President Vladimir Putin issued a warning to the United States earlier Tuesday, lowering the threshold for a nuclear strike just days after the administration of Joe Biden reportedly allowed Ukraine to fire American missiles deep into Russia.
Russia would now consider a nuclear strike if it, or its ally Belarus, faced aggression "with the use of conventional weapons that created a critical threat to their sovereignty and (or) their territorial integrity", the new doctrine said,
This represented a change from the previous iteration which stated that Russia may use nuclear weapons in case of a nuclear attack by an enemy or a conventional attack that threatened the existence of the state. Walmart to release earnings
The highlight of Tuesday's earnings slate comes from Walmart (NYSE:WMT ), with the retail giant expected to deliver another solid quarter with its low prices for essential products helping in the face of soft demand from budget-conscious consumers.
Walmart is expected to post a roughly 4% rise in revenue and 5% growth in adjusted operating income, according to estimates compiled by LSEG.
Earnings from Lowe's Companies (NYSE:LOW ) are also due this week, although the week's main corporate release is due Wednesday from chipmaking giant NVIDIA (NASDAQ:NVDA ), the world’s most valuable listed company.
Nvidia is considered as a bellwether for AI demand, with its earnings likely to set a course for technology stocks in the coming days.
The company’s shares have nearly tripled in value this year, as it logged strong demand from the rapidly growing AI sector. Nvidia makes the most advanced AI chips in the market.
Elsewhere, Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL ) slipped in premarket trade after Bloomberg reported the Department of Justice could recommend the tech giant sell off its Chrome browser as part of an antitrust crackdown.
Server maker Super Micro Computer (NASDAQ:SMCI ) rallied over 30% after it said it had appointed a new auditor and was on track to file its financial reports for the year. Crude hands back gains
Crude prices fell Tuesday, handing back some of the previous session’s sharp gains as traders digested the potential for significant supply outages.
By 06:30 ET, the U.S. crude futures (WTI) slipped 0.8% to $68.62 a barrel, while the Brent contract fell 0.6% to $72.83 a barrel.
Oil prices surged over 3% on Monday after Equinor said it had halted production at its Johan Sverdrup oilfield in Norway, the biggest oilfield in Western Europe.
The outage presents some uncertainty over oil supplies in the region, and added to the concerns created by the Biden administration’s decision to allow Ukraine to use US-made weapons to strike deep into Russia, particular;y following Putin's nuclear warning.
There has been little impact on Russian oil exports from the war so far, but if Ukraine were to target more oil infrastructure that could see oil markets add more of a geopolitical bid.
That said, the International Energy Agency’s recent monthly publication forecast that global oil supply will easily exceed demand in 2025, with the agency citing increased production outside the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies.
Production in the U.S. remained close to record highs above 13 million barrels per day, and the proposed appointment of Chris Wright, the CEO of Liberty Energy, as the next Secretary of Energy by President-elect Donald Trump has been seen as a strong signal of a focus on ramping up domestic fossil fuel production.
(Ambar Warrick contributed to this article.)
Source: Investing.com
