U.S. stock futures were trading lower in early Monday activity as market participants weighed a geopolitical escalation involving the Strait of Hormuz. President Donald Trump said he would consider imposing a blockade on the waterway after weekend negotiations with Iran failed to produce an agreement, a development investors parsed before the cash market opened.
By 06:46 ET (10:46 GMT) futures showed the Dow contract down 242 points, or 0.5%, the S&P 500 futures lower by 41 points, or 0.6%, and Nasdaq 100 futures off 154 points, or 0.6%. Oil prices moved back above $100 a barrel amid the heightened geopolitical risk, and the dollar firmed in early trading.
Sector-level flows were mixed. Energy and fertilizer stocks ticked higher in premarket trade, while shares of airline companies slipped as the possible blockade raised concerns about disruptions to shipping and fuel markets. Metals-linked names in the gold complex declined in tandem with a drop in the price of the yellow metal.
Individual company news also shaped the session ahead of the opening bell:
- Goldman Sachs reported a 19% increase in first-quarter profit, a gain the firm attributed to strong, volatile markets that supported what it called a record quarter for its trading and banking operations. Despite the robust results, the broader market reaction left financial futures under pressure.
- Allogene Therapeutics saw a sharp jump after releasing interim data from a trial of a lymphoma treatment that exceeded analysts' expectations.
- Baker Hughes climbed after Hexagon AB agreed to buy the company’s Waygate Technologies division in a cash deal valued at about $1.45 billion.
- Constellation Brands advanced following an upgrade from TD Cowen, which raised its rating to buy from hold.
- CoreWeave inched up after Macquarie moved the cloud computing company to an outperform rating from neutral.
- Fastenal fell more than 3% after its first-quarter operating income came in below expectations.
- NXP Semiconductors slipped after Bank of America downgraded the stock to neutral from Buy.
- Replimune tumbled following a second rejection by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration of its skin cancer drug application.
- Spyre Therapeutics jumped sharply after announcing that a mid-stage trial of its investigational treatment for chronic inflammatory bowel disease met its primary endpoint.
Investors entered the trading day balancing the immediate market impact of higher oil and a firmer dollar against company-specific catalysts. The geopolitical backdrop created additional uncertainty for sectors sensitive to energy price swings and international shipping routes.
Note: This report summarizes premarket activity and company-specific news that influenced early trading sentiment.