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* Futures up: Dow 0.48%, S&P 500 0.52%, Nasdaq 0.77%

May 26 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures rose to

record highs on Tuesday, as investors remained optimistic about

Middle East peace negotiations despite recent strikes, while

AI-led gains in chip stocks boosted sentiment.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday that

negotiating the deal with Iran could "take a few days," while

President Donald Trump said on a Truth Social post on Monday

that talks with Iran were going "nicely."

Brent crude oil rose as much as 3% and global stocks wavered

as uncertainty lingered over whether a deal will be reached to

open up shipping flows through the Strait of Hormuz.

"Investors still appear willing to buy dips on the

assumption that the conflict ultimately de-escalates," said

Daniela Hathorn, senior market analyst at Capital.com.

At 04:50 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were up 244 points,

or 0.48%, S&P 500 E-minis were up 38.75 points, or

0.52%, and Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 228.25 points, or

0.77%. U.S. markets were closed on Monday for the Memorial Day

holiday.

Semiconductor stocks, which have surged on AI-driven demand,

led gains. Marvell Technology ( MRVL ) rose 5.7%, while Micron

and Intel ( INTC ) added about 2% each in premarket

trading.

Wall Street has been trading at record highs with upbeat

earnings and confidence in AI trade driving equities higher

despite the ongoing conflict with Iran.

The blue-chip Dow became the last index to hit a

record high on Friday, its first since the Iran war began, while

the S&P 500 posted its best winning streak since December

2023.

With the earnings season nearly over, first-quarter earnings

growth is expected to be 29% year-on-year compared to the 16.1%

estimated a month ago, according to LSEG data from Friday.

Kevin Warsh was sworn in as chair of the Federal Reserve on

Friday. His appointment comes amid growing concerns about

inflation, driven by higher oil prices, which have added to

expectations of tighter global monetary policy.

Markets currently expect the Fed to keep rates on hold for

the rest of the year, with a 25 bps rate hike seen in December.

U.S. consumer confidence data for May is expected later in

the day, with higher gasoline prices due to the Middle East

conflict expected to weigh on consumer sentiment.

Among early movers, Joyy ( JOYY ) jumped 12.3% after the

Chinese social live-streaming platform posted first-quarter

revenue above expectations.

(Reporting by Twesha Dikshit in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini

Ganguli)