United States equity futures edged lower on Sunday night (Monday AEST) as investors assessed renewed military escalation between the United States and Iran while preparing for a busy week of corporate earnings and key inflation data.
As of 9:35 am AEST (11:35 pm GMT), Dow futures were down 0.2%, S&P 500 futures had fallen 0.3%, and Nasdaq 100 futures were 0.5% lower.
The decline followed another weekend of airstrikes between the U.S. and Iran, with Tehran targeting U.S. military facilities across several Gulf states and declaring the Strait of Hormuz closed.
U.S. President Donald Trump disputed the claim on Sunday, insisting the strategic waterway remained open to commercial shipping.
Trump had ordered fresh airstrikes against Iranian targets on Saturday following an Iranian attack on a commercial vessel transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
Oil prices climbed sharply in early trade as geopolitical tensions intensified. Brent crude futures rose 3.7% to US$78.86 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate crude futures gained more than 3% to US$74.05 a barrel.
Investor focus is also turning to the start of the second-quarter earnings season, with several of the largest U.S. banks scheduled to report this week, including JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Bank of America, Citigroup and Wells Fargo.
Results from Netflix, Johnson & Johnson and UnitedHealth are also due later in the week.
Expectations for the reporting season remain elevated, with analysts forecasting second-quarter earnings for S&P 500 companies to have increased by more than 23% from a year earlier, according to FactSet Earnings Insight.
On the economic front, investors will also be closely watching the release of the June Consumer Price Index on Tuesday, which could provide fresh clues on the Federal Reserve's interest rate outlook.
