09:08 AM EDT, 10/02/2024 (MT Newswires) -- US equity futures were little changed before Wednesday's opening bell as traders stayed on the sidelines amid escalating tensions in the Middle East.

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures, S&P 500 futures, and Nasdaq futures were all down around 0.2%.

Investors are on edge for a potential retaliation from Tel Aviv after Iran launched ballistic missiles against Israel on Tuesday.

Oil prices were higher, with front-month global benchmark North Sea Brent crude up 2.5% at $75.40 per barrel and US West Texas Intermediate crude 2.7% higher at $71.74 per barrel.

Private payrolls based on ADP Institute's employment report, released at 8:15 am ET, rose by 143,000 in September following a 103,000 increase in August, compared with estimates compiled by Bloomberg for a smaller 125,000 gain.

In other world markets, Japan's Nikkei closed 2.2% lower and Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 6.2% after a holiday on Tuesday. In Europe, the UK's FTSE 100 gained 0.1%, while Germany's DAX index fell 0.6% in early afternoon trading.

In equities, Humana (HUM) was down nearly 20% pre-bell after the company disclosed in a Form 8-K filing that the proportion of its Medicare Advantage membership enrolled in plans rated four stars and above for 2025 dropped to 25% from 94%. Nike ( NKE ) shares fell 7% after the company reported lower fiscal Q1 earnings and revenue. Lamb Weston ( LW ) shares dropped 4.5% after the company cut its fiscal 2025 profit guidance.

On the winning side, Fangdd Network Group ( DUO ) shares increased 29% pre-bell. The Chinese property technology company said it will sell about 1.6 million class A ordinary shares at $1.55 apiece in a registered direct offering.