Dow futures plunge 200 points: 5 things to know before market opens

US stock futures edged lower on Thursday, giving back some of the previous session’s relief rally, as investors weighed the durability of a fragile Middle East ceasefire and braced for fresh US inflation data later in the day.

S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures both declined by 0.4%, reflecting a modest pullback in broader market sentiment.

Meanwhile, futures linked to the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped by 194 points, also marking a roughly 0.4% decrease, indicating a consistent dip across major US equity benchmarks.

5 things to know before Wall Street opens

1. US equity futures moved lower in early trade, suggesting Wall Street could open on the back foot after Wednesday’s rebound.

The decline was modest, but it showed investors were unwilling to push risk higher before clearer signals emerged on geopolitics and inflation.

2. Markets stayed sensitive to developments in the Middle East after fighting reportedly continued despite a two-week ceasefire.

President Donald Trump said the US would keep military assets in the region until Iran agreed to a lasting peace deal, underscoring fears that the truce could still unravel.

3. For investors, the bigger issue is whether energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz normalise.

The waterway carries about 20% of global oil supply, and analysts at BCA Research said markets would look for credible signs that routes are reopening before extending the recent advance in risk assets.

4. Crude rose on Thursday after recent tanker attacks, though prices remained below the triple-digit mark.

That was enough to lift energy stocks in pre-market trading and cushion some of the broader weakness in futures, even as traders stayed wary of further disruption across the region.

5. Investors are awaiting the personal consumption expenditures price index, the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge, for fresh clues on the path of interest rates.

US rates have been on hold since July, but expectations for cuts have faded in recent months as consumer spending has remained resilient.

A firmer-than-expected reading could reinforce the view that policymakers will keep borrowing costs higher for longer.

Among individual movers, Applied Digital fell 6.7% in pre-market trading after the data-centre operator said its third-quarter net loss widened from a year earlier.

Wednesday’s rally still offers some support to sentiment.

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq posted their biggest gains in more than a week, while the Dow recorded its sharpest one-day rise in a year as investors initially welcomed the ceasefire announcement.

Even so, Thursday’s pre-market tone suggests traders want proof on two fronts before extending that move: that the truce can hold, and that inflation is not re-accelerating.

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