* Futures off: Dow 0.18%, S&P 500 0.20%, Nasdaq 0.32%

* Honeywell International ( HON ) falls 3.4%, expects hit to Q1

revenue from Middle East conflict

* Delta Air Lines ( DAL ) rises 3.6%, raises revenue expectation

for the quarter

* Fed to meet on Tuesday and Wednesday

(Updates prices throughout, adds Delta news)

By Johann M Cherian and Utkarsh Hathi

March 17 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures slipped on

Tuesday as the Middle East conflict kept oil prices pinned

near $100 a barrel, putting inflation risks back in focus ahead

of the Federal Reserve's two-day meeting starting later in the

day.

Wall Street was also cooling from a tech-driven rebound in the

previous session that saw the benchmark S&P 500 log its

biggest one-day jump in over a month. Nvidia's ( NVDA ) annual

developer conferencewas also extensively watched.

Nvidia ( NVDA ) said the revenue opportunity for its artificial

intelligence chips may reach at least $1 trillion through 2027,

as it outlined a strategy to compete more aggressively in the

fast-growing market for running AI systems in real time.

Shares of the company were slightly up in premarket trading

after Monday's 1.6% rise, while peers Advanced Micro Devices ( AMD )

and Broadcom ( AVGO ) were marginally lower.

Investors were also focused on the expanding conflict in the

Middle East that is likely to keep the Strait of Hormuz shut, as

U.S. President Donald Trump's call to allies to safeguard the

passage went unanswered.

Oil price-sensitive airlines that have faced the brunt of the

selloff since the war started got some reprieve after Delta

raised its revenue guidance for the current quarter on

accelerated demand. The carrier's shares gained 3.6% and

American added 1.2%.

On the flipside, cruise operators Carnival and Royal

Caribbean were down 1%.

Brokerages lifted their outlooks for energy prices that are

likely to dampen economic growth, a factor that the Australian

central bank also flagged when it hiked interest rates earlier

in the day.

The U.S. Fed is likely to leave borrowing costs unchanged at

the end of its two-day meeting on Wednesday.

But investors are pricing in a hawkish outlook as short-term

Treasury yields edge up and rate futures suggest just one

25-basis-point cut towards the end of the year, according to

LSEG-compiled data, down from around two before the war.

"While we do not expect central banks to make knee-jerk

policy moves, policymakers are likely to stress vigilance over

inflation risks amid elevated oil prices and uncertainty over

the length of the war," said analysts at UBS on central bank

decisions globally this week.

"Comments that are more hawkish than expected could inject

further volatility into a market that is vulnerable to shifts in

sentiment."

At 06:52 a.m. ET, U.S. S&P 500 E-minis were

down 13.5 points, or 0.2%, Nasdaq 100 E-minis

were down 77.75 points, or 0.32%, and Dow E-minis were

down 84 points, or 0.18%

Futures tracking the rate-sensitive Russell 2000 index

lost 0.5%, while Wall Street's fear gauge, the CBOE volatility

index, edged up 0.22 points to 23.73.

Despite the global turmoil in markets due to the war, U.S.

stocks have held up better than those in Europe and Asia on

expectations that the repercussions on the economy will be less

severe.

However, analysts have underscored that investors are yet to

fully consider the effects of the war on the global economy.

Honeywell International ( HON ) slipped 3.4% after the

industrial giant said the conflict could hit its first-quarter

revenue by a high-single-digit percentage, weeks after oilfield

services company SLB flagged an earnings squeeze.

The conflict has also delayed a planned summit between U.S. and

China's leaders on President Trump's request.

Among others, ride-hailing app Uber ( UBER ) added 2.6% after

announcing plans to roll out robotaxis in 28 cities starting

next year, powered by Nvidia's ( NVDA ) autonomous driving software.

Energy companies Occidental, ConocoPhillips ( COP ) and

EQT rose more than 1% each on higher crude and gas

prices.

(Reporting by Johann M Cherian and Utkarsh Hathi in Bengaluru;

Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri and Devika Syamnath)