* Futures down: Dow 0.2%, S&P 500 0.1%, Nasdaq 0.3%

* Fed Chair Warsh due to speak at 9 am ET

* Shutterstock ( SSTK ) plunges on scrapped Getty Images ( GETY ) merger

* Nike ( NKE ) falls as swift turnaround hopes fade

(Updates prices)

By Niket Nishant and Avinash P

July 1 (Reuters) - Wall Street futures dipped on Wednesday

as U.S.-Iran tensions cast fresh doubt over peace in the Middle

East, marking a cautious start to the second half of the year,

while investors awaited commentary from Federal Reserve Chair

Kevin Warsh.

Tehran said it would not meet with top U.S. envoys who flew

to the region following ​an outbreak of hostilities, suggesting

that a breakthrough in peace negotiations may not be imminent.

However, a source with direct knowledge of the talks as well

as an Iranian official said the U.S. and Iran held technical

talks in Doha on Wednesday.

Repeated false dawns and contrasting rhetoric in

negotiations have made the war situation difficult to track,

leading some investors to focus instead on the economy's

underlying pillars.

But premarket declines indicate that the Middle East war

remains difficult to ignore, especially given the impact the

region has on global energy markets.

At 07:05 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis fell 109 points, or

0.21%, S&P 500 E-minis lost 8.75 points, or 0.12%, and

Nasdaq 100 E-minis shed 91.5 points, or 0.3%.

Investors are also worried the U.S. Federal Reserve may need

to hike rates and keep them elevated to control inflation.

Traders expect the central bank to raise rates at least once

by the end of the year, according to data compiled by LSEG.

Additionally, data released on Tuesday showed U.S. job

openings edged up to a two-year high in May, indicating that the

labor market remains stable. That could give the Fed less reason

to worry about employment, allowing it greater leeway to focus

on price stability.

"The markets will increasingly home in on U.S. interest rate

risk. The data is pointing in a direction that suggests

employment is no longer an impediment to the Fed in tackling

inflation and possibly raising rates," said Kyle Rodda, senior

financial market analyst at Capital.com.

Rate uncertainty is also high because Warsh, who took over

as Federal Reserve chief in May, has launched a review that

could reshape the way the central bank communicates with the

public.

In his first policy meeting as Fed chair, Warsh achieved

consensus ​around a policy statement jettisoning any forward

guidance on the central bank's near-term actions.

Warsh will join other central bank chiefs at a forum in

Portugal later in the day. Traders will also parse U.S.

manufacturing activity data from the Institute for Supply

Management, expected on Wednesday.

Additionally, markets will look for clues on the health of

the job market on Thursday, when the nonfarm payrolls report for

June is due to be released.

Major movers in the premarket session included Nike ( NKE ),

which fell 3.3% after its results as the sportswear giant

signaled its turnaround strategy still faces obstacles.

Shutterstock ( SSTK ) plunged nearly 30% after calling off

its planned merger with Getty Images ( GETY ).

Oklo ( OKLO ) added 5.4% after the nuclear technology

company said the U.S. Department of Energy had approved the

safety analysis for its Groves isotope test reactor.