April 6 (Reuters) – U.S. stock index futures inched higher on Monday, after the main indexes marked their biggest weekly jump in four months in the last session, as investors assessed prospects of an end to the Middle East conflict.
The U.S. and Iran received a framework of a plan to end the hostilities, a day after President Donald Trump threatened to rain “hell” on Tehran if it did not make a deal. Iran said the Strait of Hormuz will not be reopened under a temporary ceasefire.
Investors drew some comfort from an Axios report, citing four sources with knowledge of the talks that the U.S., Iran and a group of regional mediators are discussing the terms for a potential 45-day ceasefire.
Oil prices eased slightly on Monday and U.S. energy stocks were a little lower in premarket trading. Exxon Mobil fell 1.3%, Chevron lost 1% and Occidental Petroleum was off 1.7%.
Wall Street’s main indexes ended mixed on Thursday, but posted their first weekly gains in six as the prospects of an end to the conflict provided some relief.
The hostilities have entered their second month after battering global markets in March. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq posted their biggest monthly drop since 2022, and the Dow, the Nasdaq and the Russell 2000 confirmed correction territory, falling 10% below their record high closes.
Trading volumes on Monday were expected to be thin as many markets in Europe and Asia are closed for public holidays.
At 04:50 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were up 73 points, or 0.16%, S&P 500 E-minis were up 24.25 points, or 0.37% and Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 159.25 points, or 0.66%.
This week, investors will parse through domestic inflation data to see if the price pressures from soaring energy costs, stemming from the Iran war, have trickled into the economy.
These would follow Friday’s data that showed U.S. job growth rebounded more than expected in March, with the increase in nonfarm payrolls the biggest in 15 months.
Money market participants are not pricing in any easing from the central bank this year, compared to two cuts they had expected before the war broke out, per CME Group’s FedWatch Tool.
Among premarket moves, Soleno Therapeutics shares surged over 30% after the Financial Times reported on Sunday that Neurocrine Biosciences was nearing a deal to acquire the rare genetics drugmaker for more than $2.5 billion.
(Reporting by Purvi Agarwal in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli)
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