Nasdaq futures climb as investors look past Iran escalation

Highlights

Nasdaq rose 0.60%, S&P 500 gained 0.16%, and Dow slipped 0.02%.
Investors are weighing a second day of U.S. strikes on Iran.
Tech shares remain the main support for market sentiment.
SK Hynix’s U.S. listing will test demand for AI chip stocks.

Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.60% to 29,645.75, while S&P 500 futures gained 0.16% to 7,541.00. Dow Jones futures were little changed, slipping 0.02% to 52,613.00. The move broadly matched early U.S. futures trading, where technology-linked contracts outperformed while oil prices retreated from the prior session’s spike, Yahoo Finance reports.

Markets steady after Iran escalation

The U.S. military said Wednesday evening that it had begun additional strikes against Iran to weaken Tehran’s ability to threaten freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz. The action followed earlier U.S. strikes after attacks on commercial ships in and around the waterway.

The escalation came after President Donald Trump said the ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran was over. His comments briefly shook markets Wednesday, sending oil prices sharply higher and prompting stocks to pare gains before the close.

By Thursday morning, however, the equity reaction looked more measured. Investors appeared to be treating the latest round of strikes as a serious risk, but not yet as a shock large enough to derail the broader rally in U.S. assets.

Tech remains the market anchor

The stronger move in Nasdaq futures showed that the technology trade still has support, even after the June sell-off in AI-linked chip names. Investors are watching whether that pullback was a temporary reset or the start of a wider reassessment of valuations in the sector.

The next test comes from SK Hynix, whose U.S. listing is expected to begin trading Friday. The chipmaker’s debut will give markets a fresh read on appetite for AI infrastructure stocks at a time when enthusiasm for semiconductors has become more selective.

Risk appetite holds, but the margin is narrow

Thursday’s futures move matters because it shows investors are not abandoning equities despite a worsening geopolitical backdrop. The key question is whether oil, shipping risks, and military escalation stay contained.

If the Strait of Hormuz remains under pressure, higher energy costs could quickly become a problem for inflation expectations and corporate margins. For now, though, the market is drawing a line between geopolitical headlines and the earnings and AI themes that have supported U.S. stocks this year.

Earlier, we reported that Brent and WTI fall as traders reassessed Iran's supply risks.

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