A man looks at a screen showing global stock market information on the street in Tokyo, Japan.
Chris McGrath | Getty Images
Asia-Pacific markets were set to open higher, tracking Wall Street gains overnight as a drop in oil prices and strong earnings lifted investor sentiment.
Signaling diplomatic efforts for resolving the Middle East crisis were on track, President Donald Trump said the U.S. bid to guide ships out of Strait of Hormuz had been paused.
“We have mutually agreed that, while the Blockade will remain in full force and effect, Project Freedom will be paused for a short period of time to see whether or not the Agreement can be finalized and signed,” Trump said in his Truth Social post.
The U.S. military on Monday began guiding commercial ships out of the Strait of Hormuz under Project Freedom. U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Tuesday said that “two U.S. commercial ships, along with American destroyers, have already safely transited the strait, showing the lane is clear.”
West Texas Intermediate futures for June was 2% lower at $100.13 per barrel as of 7:45 p.m. ET. Brent crude futures for July last traded at $109.87 per barrel.
In Australia, futures last traded at 8,719, while the S&P/ASX 200’s closed at 8,680.50.
Hong Kong Hang Seng index futures were at 25,860, compared with the index’s last close of 25,898.61.
Japan stock market trading is closed due to a holiday.
S&P 500 futures added 0.2%, while Nasdaq 100 futures climbed 0.6%. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 30 points, or less than 0.1%.
During Tuesday’s regular session, the S&P 500 rose 0.81%, hitting a new all-time high and closing at a record of 7,259.22. The Nasdaq Composite gained 1.03%, touching a new high and notching a closing record of 25,326.13. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 356.35 points, or 0.73%, to end at 49,298.25.
— CNBC’s Sean Conlon and Lisa Kailai Han contributed to this report.