Nasdaq, Tech Stocks in Rally Mode Ahead of Fed Decision
Investors are eager to hear Fed Chair Walsh’s Fed dot plot for the rest of 2026
Stock futures are little changed Wednesday morning, with Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) and S&P 500 (SPX) futures hovering near the flatline, after the blue-chip index closed at another record high in the previous session. Nasdaq-100 (IXIC) futures are up triple digits, pointing to a stronger open for tech and semiconductor stocks.
Investors are weighing higher oil prices after President Donald Trump signaled a final agreement with Iran has yet to be reached, and would “go right back to dropping bombs” if the agreement doesn’t meet his standards. Attention now turns to the Federal Reserve’s latest interest rate decision at 2:00 p.m., and new Chairman Kevin Warsh’s first post-meeting press conference. Investors are expecting rates to remain unchanged.
Continue reading for more on today’s market, including:
- Faltering homebuilding stock rebounds before earnings.
- Senior Quantitative Analyst Rocky White compares SPCX’s historical debut among others.
- Plus, INTC rebounds, streaming favorite turned LION away, ASTS’ satellite launch.
5 Things You Need to Know Today
- The Cboe Options Exchange saw more than 2.4 million call contracts and 1.4 million put contracts traded on Tuesday. The single-session equity put/call ratio rose to 0.59, while the 21-day moving average remained at 0.59.
- Chipmaker Intel Corp (NASDAQ:INTC) is up 2.7% ahead of the open, after the company enters the initial production of its chip manufacturing segment. Intel stock is not far off its May 11 record high of $132.75, and is up 217% in 2026.
- Lionsgate Studios Corp (NYSE:LION) has shed 5.5% in premarket trading after Netflix (NFLX) squashed rumors about acquiring the media conglomerate. Shares reached an all-time high of $16.70 yesterday, though today’s pullback has LION poised to snap a fay-day win streak.
- Jumping off its successful BlueBird trio satellite launch, AST SpaceMobile (NYSE:ASTS) shares are 6% higher before the open, with optimism that the company will continue to build its cellular broadband network in space. Carrying a 27% month-to-date deficit, ASTS is looking to rebound off the $80 level and add to its 96% year-over-year gain.
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Investors are tuning in to more than the Fed interest rate decision this week.
Kospi Leads Asian Markets Higher
Asian markets closed mostly higher on Wednesday. China’s State Council issued a new five-year employment plan, reaffirming its commitment to maintaining labor market stability, while the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) announced it was deepening control over short-term money markets. The South Korean Kospi led the regional gains with a 1.6% rise, while Japan’s Nikkei jumped 0.7%, and China’s Shanghai Composite tacked on 0.4%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was the only loser, shedding 0.7%.
European markets are trading with caution today. London’s FTSE 100 was last seen down 0.03%, while the German DAX falls 0.1%, and the French CAC 40 rises 0.1%.
