New York, May 20, 2026, 06:09 (EDT)
- U.S. stock index futures traded up ahead of the bell. Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.73%, S&P 500 futures added 0.35%, and Dow futures gained 0.11% during early session delays.
- Nvidia is set to report after the close. Options markets are implying a move of about 6.5% in the shares, which translates to around $355 billion in market value.
- Fed minutes are set for release at 2:00 p.m. EDT. Traders will watch to see if the rebound holds, with inflation worries leaving the door open for more rate hikes.
Stock index futures in the U.S. moved higher early Wednesday, with tech futures leading gains as traders waited for Nvidia’s earnings. Investors want to see if the AI trade can help Wall Street recover after three days of losses. Index futures trade ahead of the opening bell and indicate where the major indexes may start the day.
Stocks are down for the third day as the S&P 500 and Nasdaq both fell, with higher Treasury yields, oil prices and talk of a possible Fed rate hike instead of a cut moving the market. On Tuesday, the Dow dropped 0.65%, the S&P 500 slipped 0.67%, and the Nasdaq lost 0.84%.
Core trading at the NYSE was set for its usual 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Eastern time window. The next planned holiday shutdown is Memorial Day on May 25, 2026. Full details on NYSE hours can be found here.
Nasdaq 100 futures climbed 210.25 points to 29,134.50, with S&P 500 futures up 25.50 points at 7,403.50. Dow futures added 52 points to 49,511, based on 10-minute delayed data. Russell 2000 futures, tracking smaller stocks, edged up 0.31%.
Nvidia sits at the center. Traders have priced in a swing of 6.5% either way for Thursday, after the chipmaker reports, based on options data tracked by Reuters. Options are used to hedge or speculate on price moves. Reuters said a shift that size would mean about $355 billion in market value, bigger than most S&P 500 firms.
Nvidia climbed 1.84% in premarket trading. Other chip stocks also rose, with Micron up 4.14%, Intel up 4.22%, and AMD adding 2.02%. Investors seemed ready to take on some risk in semis ahead of the earnings report.
Nvidia is under pressure. Reuters reported analysts see revenue jumping almost 80% to close to $79 billion. Investors are watching data-center demand, margins, and big cloud spend. Intel, AMD and Alphabet are also going after Nvidia in inference chips, which run AI after training, Reuters said.
Bond moves continued to steer trade. Reuters quoted Brent crude at $109.44 a barrel, off 1.65%. The 10-year Treasury yield hovered close to 4.647%. The 30-year yield touched 5.198% overnight, a level Reuters said traders hadn’t seen since 2007, then slipped back.
Jefferies’ Mohit Kumar said the firm has told clients to “avoid longer-dated bonds” with the oil shock adding to inflation and deficits. “Higher rates” could start to hit risk assets including stocks, he said. IG analyst Tony Sycamore described the retreat as a “corrective pullback” following a “phenomenal rally,” and cautioned Nvidia may have a tougher time surprising investors. Reuters
Fed minutes up next, with rate risk still close to the Nvidia trade. The Federal Reserve will release minutes from its April 28-29 meeting at 2:00 p.m. EDT. Most economists in a Reuters poll see the federal funds rate staying at 3.50%-3.75% through at least the third quarter. “Both hikes and cuts are feasible,” Aditya Bhave, head of U.S. economics at Bank of America, told Reuters, but the base case is no move. Federal Reserve
Plenty can still go wrong for markets. Another uptick in oil, higher long-end yields, or Fed minutes with a more hawkish tone could stall the futures rally. A weak Nvidia outlook, if it doesn’t back more AI spending, could do the same. ORATS founder Matt Amberson told Reuters that investors might be “complacent about AI/capex.” Susquehanna’s Chris Murphy said traders are pushing for Nvidia upside but using hedges on other popular chip names. Reuters
Premarket trading showed some improvement, but things weren’t resolved. The early move up didn’t convince many the market is ready to buy risk again. Traders seem to be waiting on Nvidia’s report after the close and Fed minutes later today to see if Tuesday’s drop turns out to be a brief setback or the beginning of something bigger.
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