July 8 (Reuters) – U.S. stock index futures slid sharply on Wednesday, with Nasdaq futures touching a four-week low after President Donald Trump said a memorandum of understanding aimed at ending the war with Iran was “over”, sending oil prices rising.
Speaking in Ankara ahead of a NATO summit in the Turkish capital, the U.S. president said he had no interest in engaging further with Iran, deepening investor concerns over renewed escalation in the Middle East and marking the latest blow to the fragile ceasefire between Washington and Tehran.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they had targeted U.S. military sites in Bahrain and Kuwait after the U.S. launched a wave of strikes on Iran. Washington said those strikes were in response to attacks on tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway for global oil shipments.
Oil prices extended gains on Wednesday following Trump’s remarks, with Brent crude futures and U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures both rising more than 5%.
The jump in crude prices lifted energy stocks in premarket trading. Chevron rose 2.4%, Exxon Mobil gained 3% and ConocoPhillips advanced 2.2%.
Devon Energy climbed 2.5%, while Occidental Petroleum, APA Corp and Diamondback Energy were up 2.6%, 4.2% and 2.4%, respectively.
Investors will also focus on the minutes of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s June policy meeting, due later in the session, for clues on how policymakers are assessing inflation risks and economic growth.
According to CME’s FedWatch tool, markets are currently pricing in at least one rate hike by the end of 2026.
At 04:56 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis fell 620 points, or 1.17%, S&P 500 E-minis lost 63.75 points, or 0.84%, and Nasdaq 100 E-minis shed 330 points, or 1.12%.
(Reporting by Ragini Mathur in Bengaluru; Editing by Pooja Desai)
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