U.S. equity futures showed modest gains Monday evening after a late-afternoon rally on Wall Street, as investors weighed conflicting statements on diplomacy with Iran and prepared for a busy week of second-quarter corporate results.
Futures snapshot - At 20:14 ET (00:14 GMT) S&P 500 futures were up 0.07% at 7,634.25 points. Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.14% to 28,931.75 points, and Dow Jones futures gained 0.18% to 53,432.0 points.
Futures followed a positive session in the cash market, where a sharp decline in oil prices helped sentiment after Washington said it had canceled a major attack on Iran. Technology and artificial intelligence-related stocks recovered from significant losses recorded in the prior month, supporting the broader advance.
Among individual movers, Palantir Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:PLTR) outperformed in aftermarket trading, jumping nearly 14% after posting strong results for its June quarter.
Geopolitical headlines and market response - The market moved on a series of mixed signals about any diplomatic breakthrough with Iran. President Donald Trump asserted that talks with Iran were ongoing, a statement that helped lift risk sentiment. However, Tehran largely denied that direct discussions with Washington were taking place, according to state media. Iran did confirm it was speaking with Oman about the status of the Strait of Hormuz, yet traffic through the waterway remained light amid elevated U.S.-Iran military tensions.
Trump also threatened Iran to accept a deal, according to comments reported later on Monday. Separately, markets took some comfort from a weekend remark by Trump that he had called off a major planned attack on Iran, a development that coincided with the sharp drop in oil prices and provided relief to investors.
The S&P 500, the NASDAQ Composite and the Dow Jones Industrial Average each posted gains on Monday, advancing between 1% and 2.3%.
Earnings and data to watch - Attention now turns to a number of significant corporate reports and key economic data. SpaceX (NASDAQ:SPCX) is scheduled to release its first quarterly earnings report as a public company on Tuesday. Other major companies slated to report on Tuesday include chipmaker AMD (NASDAQ:AMD), industrial heavyweight Caterpillar Inc (NYSE:CAT) and drugmaker Merck & Company Inc (NYSE:MRK).
Later in the week, markets will focus on the July nonfarm payrolls report, which is expected to offer further cues on economic momentum and the likely path for interest rates.
Market context - The combination of geopolitical ambiguity, a rapid move lower in oil prices and a rebound in tech and AI stocks drove the recent market action. With a packed earnings schedule and the labor-market snapshot ahead, investors are positioning for potential volatility tied to corporate results and macroeconomic data.