US Stock Futures Steady as Trump-Xi Meeting and Iran Talks Near

US stock futures held near flat early Wednesday, September 23, after the NASDAQ Composite closed at a record high. Traders watched changing oil prices, talks between US and Iranian officials, and a planned meeting between President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Dow, S&P 500 and NASDAQ Futures Show Small Moves

At 7:50 a.m. ET, Dow futures dropped 31 points, or 0.31%. S&P 500 futures lost 0.13%, while NASDAQ-100 futures fell 0.33%. The moves left all three contracts close to Tuesday’s closing levels as traders waited for further news from the Middle East.

The quiet start followed a mixed session on Wall Street. The NASDAQ Composite gained 0.45% to 27,244.28 on Tuesday, its second straight record close. The S&P 500 finished nearly flat at 7,764.64, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.36% to 51,863.69. Meanwhile, Micron rose about 5%, and SanDisk gained nearly 7% as chip stocks advanced.

Those gains did not extend across the market. Six of the S&P 500’s 11 sectors fell Tuesday. Financial stocks led the decline, and JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo each lost more than 3%. The split between rising chip shares and falling financial shares carried into Wednesday’s watch on technology, interest rates and energy costs.

Oil Moves as Traders Await More from US-Iran Talks

Brent crude stayed below USD 100 a barrel on Wednesday, although its price shifted during morning trading. One market snapshot put Brent at USD 98.83, down 0.40%. Reuters also reported that Saudi Arabia had restarted operations at its East-West Pipeline and might have resumed exports from the Red Sea port of Yanbu.

Meanwhile, traders awaited details from US and Iranian officials after they held talks during the United Nations General Assembly in New York. Trump described Tuesday’s meeting as ‘very good.’ However, his UN speech also raised doubts about the path to a deal: he said he faced a choice between reaching an agreement with Tehran and ‘annihilat[ing]’ the country. Neither statement established that the two sides had reached an agreement.

Oil prices matter to the stock market because fuel costs feed into business expenses and inflation readings. The price moves came after months of disruption tied to the US-Iran war. For now, traders have two separate developments to assess: the talks themselves and whether oil supplies continue to improve.

Trump-Xi Meeting Adds Trade and AI to the Agenda

Xi is due to arrive in Washington on Wednesday ahead of a meeting with Trump on Thursday. Reportedly,  the agenda includes the US-China trade truce, artificial intelligence regulation and US arms sales to Taiwan. Xi is also expected to meet executives from General Motors, Meta, Apple, Amazon and Tesla.

The planned talks come as AI stocks help drive the NASDAQ’s gains. Strong interest in Meta’s Muse assistant has supported some companies that supply AI technology. At the same time, traders have weighed whether assistants that can carry out tasks for users could compete with consumer businesses. That concern contributed to losses in several financial and travel-related shares on Tuesday.

The meeting gives investors a scheduled point to watch for policy news. Trade and AI rules sit on the agenda, but the two governments have not announced a new agreement. Until they do, Tuesday’s NASDAQ record remains the latest confirmed market result rather than evidence of an outcome from Thursday’s talks.

US Economic Data and Fed Speakers Come Next

S&P Global’s September purchasing managers’ index is due Wednesday. Economists surveyed by Reuters expect the report to show that US business activity continued to expand. Federal Reserve Governor Michael Barr is also scheduled to speak, giving traders another chance to assess the central bank’s view after last week’s interest rate increase.

Boston Fed President Susan Collins said Tuesday that she supported that increase because of inflation risks. Early Wednesday, futures traders put the chance of another rate rise of at least 25 basis points next month, according to CME Group’s FedWatch tool. Those expectations can change as new data and Fed remarks arrive.

Also Read: Trump-Xi Summit Draws U.S. and Chinese Tech Leaders for AI Talks