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Futures up: Dow 0.34%, S&P 0.34%, Nasdaq 0.37%

March 27 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures rebounded

on Wednesday after ending lower in the last session, as

investors shifted focus to comments from Federal Reserve

officials to gauge the central bank's policy path in a

holiday-thinned week.

The Dow and the S&P 500 recorded their third

consecutive decline on Tuesday, as stocks struggled to maintain

an upwards momentum with most megacap names coming under

pressure.

Investors would look forward to commentary from Fed Board

Governor Christopher Waller, who is set to speak at the Economic

Club of New York later in the day.

"Waller is generally considered a hawk, so it will be

interesting to see how he reacts to the latest data releases,"

Francesco Pesole, an FX strategist at ING, noted.

"When it comes to Fed pricing, we doubt expectations for the

June meeting will change much this week unless we see a surprise

in Friday's PCE (Personal Consumption Expenditures)."

The PCE price index, the Fed's preferred inflation gauge, is

due on Friday, when U.S. markets will remain closed for Good

Friday.

The PCE is expected to have risen 0.4% in February and 2.5%

on an annual basis. Core inflation, which excludes volatile food

and energy components, is estimated to have risen 0.3% last

month, which would keep the annual pace at 2.8%, according to

economists polled by Reuters.

An upside surprise to inflation can potentially dampen

market enthusiasm around early rate cuts.

Traders see an at least 70% chance the Fed will begin its

easing cycle in June, according to the CME FedWatch tool.

All three major U.S. stock indexes eye quarterly gains as an

AI-inspired rally helped Wall Street clutch record highs

recently, while optimism about the Fed cutting borrowing costs

later in the year also added to gains.

At 05:15 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis were up 136 points,

or 0.34%, S&P 500 e-minis were up 18 points, or 0.34%,

and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were up 69 points, or 0.37%.

Most megacap growth stocks rose before the bell, with Tesla

amongst top gainers, up 1.2%, while AI-giant Nvidia ( NVDA )

added 1.0%, after falling over 2% in the last session.

Merck & Co ( MRK ) gained 4.9% after the U.S. Food and Drug

Administration approved its therapy for adults with high blood

pressure due to constriction of lung arteries.

Trump Media & Technology Group ( DJT ) jumped 12.0%, a day

after its stellar debut on the Nasdaq.

Robinhood Markets ( HOOD ) advanced 6.5%, after the online

trading app launched a new credit card.

GameStop ( GME ) slipped 15.3% after the videogame retailer

reported lower fourth-quarter revenue and said it had cut an

unspecified number of jobs to reduce costs.