U. S.
stock futures moved higher early Wednesday, September 30, 2026, as investors positioned themselves ahead of key inflation and growth reports.
Contracts tied to the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 added 0.2%, while Dow Jones Industrial Average futures gained 0.4% as trading opened.
The main focus is the August Personal Consumption Expenditures price index, the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation gauge.
Economists expect the PCE index to rise 0.3% month-over-month, putting the annual pace at 3.7%.
The market action follows recent pressure on equities after the 30-year Treasury bond yield surpassed 5.6% on Tuesday, its highest since June 2002.
The 10-year yield also reached 5.3%, reflecting tighter financial conditions.
Jose Torres, senior economist at Interactive Brokers, said equities are trying to hang in there, but tighter financial conditions are emboldening the bears and lifting interest in downside hedges.
Expectations for an October rate hike eased after Federal Reserve official John Williams suggested late Tuesday that central bankers have time to gather more information before making policy adjustments.
Williams, President of the New York Federal Reserve, stated there is no need for urgency and that there is time to gather more information before the Fed's October meeting.
Following his remarks, CME Group probability tracking showed traders pricing in roughly a 47% chance of a quarter-point rate hike next month, down from 71% earlier in the week.
In corporate news, Boeing shares gained over 3% in premarket trading after securing a Pentagon contract valued at more than $20 billion.
The contract is to develop its Sixth-Generation F/A-XX Strike Fighter for the U. S.
Navy.
Global markets also posted positive performance, with the pan-European Stoxx 600 advancing 0.71% and Japan's Nikkei 225 benchmark closing 1.94% higher.
