April 21 (Reuters) – U.S. stock index futures rose on Tuesday as renewed artificial intelligence optimism bolstered markets battered by repeated back-and-forth linked to headlines about the Middle East conflict.
J.P. Morgan raised its year-end target for the S&P 500, citing AI and tech-driven earnings, while Amazon said on Monday it will invest up to $25 billion in Anthropic, signaling Big Tech is still willing to pour money into AI. Amazon shares rose 2.7%.
Investors are also awaiting the Senate confirmation hearing for Kevin Warsh, President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Federal Reserve.
Republican Senator Thom Tillis has promised to block his confirmation until the Department of Justice ends an investigation into Fed Chair Jerome Powell that Tillis sees as a threat to the central bank’s independence.
The outcome of the hearing could have far-reaching implications for monetary policy. Typically, if a nominee for Fed chair is not confirmed, the incumbent remains in place in the interim. But Trump has vowed to fire Powell if he does not leave when his term ends in May.
Despite the uncertainty, AI hopes and upbeat earnings prevented investors from retreating to the sidelines.
Of the 48 companies in the benchmark S&P 500 index that reported earnings as of last Friday, 87.5% surpassed analysts’ estimates, compared with a long-term average of 67.4%, according to LSEG data.
“The U.S. equity market should continue to make new highs in coming months on the back of continued earnings growth,” analysts at Goldman Sachs said.
“Consensus earnings estimates have risen consistently in recent weeks, providing the fundamental underpinning for the market rally.”
At 4:56 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis rose 101 points, or 0.2%, U.S. S&P 500 E-minis added 16 points, or 0.22%, and Nasdaq 100 E-minis advanced 89 points, or 0.33%.
Markets have been pulled in opposite directions by a torrent of conflicting headlines in recent days.
On Friday, Tehran’s vow to reopen the Strait of Hormuz — a crucial waterway for oil shipping — briefly sparked hopes for de-escalation, which quickly faded over the weekend when Iran fired what appeared to be warning shots at vessels and the U.S. military seized an Iranian cargo ship.
Iran has said it would skip a second round of negotiations with Washington, though a senior official later told Reuters the country may yet send delegates to talks expected in Islamabad.
“In the near term, equity market gyrations will likely continue to mirror geopolitical volatility,” Goldman analysts said.
Apple was among the stocks under the spotlight in the premarket session, falling 0.6% after the company said CEO Tim Cook would hand over the reins to longtime hardware boss John Ternus.
Alaska Air fell 3.5% as the airline withdrew its full-year profit forecast.
(Reporting by Niket Nishant in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika Syamnath)
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