07:53 AM EDT, 06/18/2026 (MT Newswires) -- US equity futures were higher pre-bell Thursday after the US and Iran digitally signed an agreement aimed at ending the war in the Middle East.

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were 0.3% higher, S&P 500 futures were up 0.6%, and Nasdaq futures were 1.4% higher.

President Donald Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian digitally signed a memorandum of understanding targeting a permanent peace deal to end the war between the US and Iran. Amid criticism that Iran came out with the better end of the deal, Trump said in a post on Truth Social that people thinking he was not tough enough on the Middle Eastern nation were "either jealous, bad people, or stupid."

All three major US stock indexes ended lower on Wednesday after Federal Reserve officials signaled a potential rate hike by the end of 2026 as inflation remains elevated.

Traders observed the latest round of earnings, with Accenture ( ACN ) posting higher fiscal Q3 earnings and revenue.

Oil prices were lower, with front-month global benchmark North Sea Brent crude down 1.5% at $78.36 per barrel and US West Texas Intermediate crude 2.2% lower at $75.13 per barrel.

The weekly jobless claims bulletin, scheduled for release at 8:30 am ET, is expected to show 225,000 new unemployment claims for the week ended June 13, down from 229,000 in the prior week, according to estimates compiled by Bloomberg. The Philadelphia Fed's regional manufacturing index for May is seen coming in at 10.0, swinging from negative 0.4 posted previously.