07:33 AM EDT, 03/17/2026 (MT Newswires) -- US equity futures retreated on Tuesday while oil prices increased as investors await the Federal Reserve's latest decision on interest rates.

The S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average decreased 0.2% each in premarket activity, while the Nasdaq was off 0.3%. The S&P 500 and the Dow finished Monday trading higher, each snapping a four-day losing streak, while the Nasdaq recorded its first gain after two days of declines.

US President Donald Trump on Monday urged other countries to contribute to the defense of the key Strait of Hormuz, the world's most important chokepoint for crude flows, from Iranian attacks, Bloomberg News reported. Trump said the US is in discussions with "about seven" countries to get involved in helping ships pass through the strait.

"I really am demanding that these countries come in and protect their own territory," Trump said. "It's the place from which they get their energy, and they should come and they should help us protect it."

The Strait of Hormuz was effectively closed by Iran after the Middle East conflict started last month. The strait's continued closure could threaten trading flows of key industrial materials including plastic and aluminum as concerns mount that supply disruptions could move beyond energy markets, Morgan Stanley said in a note on Monday.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose 2.9% to $96.22 a barrel before the opening bell, while Brent gained 2.8% to $102.98.

The Fed's monetary policy committee is set to kick off its meeting on interest rates today, with a decision due tomorrow. Markets widely expect the central bank to keep its benchmark lending rate unchanged for a second consecutive meeting, according to the CME FedWatch tool.

The Fed's updated economic projections will likely continue to signal one interest rate cut in 2026 amid uncertainty around the impact of the Iran war, UBS Securities said in a note e-mailed on Monday.

The two-year Treasury yield was unchanged in premarket action at 3.68%, while the 10-year rate inclined 0.8 basis points to 4.23%.

Tuesday's economic calendar has the delayed housing starts and permits data for February at 8:30 am ET, followed by the pending home sales index for last month at 10 am.

US homebuilder confidence rose in March despite continued affordability concerns amid elevated construction costs and shortages of labor and buildable lots, the National Association of Home Builders and Wells Fargo said Monday.

Elbit Systems' ( ESLT ) US-listed shares advanced 6.3% pre-bell after the Israeli defense electronics company reported a year-over-year increase in its fourth-quarter results. Tencent Music Entertainment ( TME ) shares on the New York stock exchange fell 1.2% following its latest quarterly results.

Academy Sports and Outdoors ( ASO ) is also scheduled to release its earnings before the bell, among others. Lululemon Athletica ( LULU ) , DocuSign ( DOCU ) and Oklo ( OKLO ) post their financial statements after the markets close.

Gold nudged 0.1% higher to $5,009 per troy ounce, while bitcoin shed 0.5% to $73,681.