United States stock futures lifted on Monday night (Tuesday AEST) following comments by President Donald Trump, who said a ceasefire timeline had been established to end the conflict between Iran and Israel.
Trump made the announcement on Truth Social, easing geopolitical tensions that have weighed on investor sentiment in recent days.
“It has been fully agreed by and between Israel and Iran that there will be a Complete and Total CEASEFIRE (in approximately 6 hours from now, when Israel and Iran have wound down and completed their in progress, final missions!), for 12 hours, at which point the War will be considered, ENDED!
"Officially, Iran will start the CEASEFIRE and, upon the 12th Hour, Israel will start the CEASEFIRE and, upon the 24th Hour, an Official END to THE 12 DAY WAR will be saluted by the World.”
By 8:45 am AEST (10:45 pm GMT) Dow Jones Industrial Average futures and S&P 500 futures added 0.4% apiece, while Nasdaq 100 futures lifted 0.6%.
In extended trading, KB Home fell 2.2% after lowering its full-year revenue forecast. The company now expects revenues between US$6.3 billion and $6.5 billion, down from its previous estimate of $6.6 billion and $7 billion.
The guidance cut overshadowed a better-than-expected second-quarter earnings and revenue result, with earnings per share (EPS) coming in at $1.50 versus $1.46 expected, while revenues were reported at $1.53 billion versus $1.5 billion predicted.
Earlier in the day, Wall Street posted gains despite ongoing Middle East tensions. The Dow and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.9% apiece, while the S&P 500 added 1%.
Oil prices also retreated sharply, supporting equities. West Texas Intermediate crude futures fell 7.2% on Monday, after reaching their highest level since January.
Looking ahead, markets will be closely watching Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, who is set to testify before the House Financial Services Committee and the Senate Banking Committee throughout the week.
His testimony comes amid renewed pressure from the White House to lower interest rates, and recent dovish remarks from Fed officials that have raised expectations of a possible rate cut as soon as July.
Investors await fresh economic data, including the latest U.S. home price figures and June’s Conference Board consumer confidence reading.
