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Futures up: Dow 0.12%, S&P 500 0.24%, Nasdaq up 0.41%

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Nvidia ( NVDA ) on track for $5 trillion market value

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Alphabet, Microsoft ( MSFT ) and Meta report results after markets

close

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Fed's monetary policy decision due later in the day

(Updates with analyst comments, prices before the opening bell)

By Pranav Kashyap and Twesha Dikshit

Oct 29 (Reuters) - Wall Street was poised for a higher

open on Wednesday as Nvidia ( NVDA ) inched closer to a $5 trillion

valuation, while investors awaited an expected Federal Reserve

rate cut and a wave of Big Tech results.

Shares of Nvidia ( NVDA ) rose 3.3% in premarket trading

after CEO Jensen Huang announced $500 billion in AI chip orders

and plans to build seven supercomputers for the U.S. government.

The stock has jumped about 50% so far this year, and been

among the top boosts to U.S. equities in 2025. Apple ( AAPL )

briefly topped $4 trillion in market cap on Tuesday, while

Microsoft ( MSFT ) trades above that level.

"Nvidia ( NVDA ) has an undeniably strong position in the AI chipset

market and deals with a range of firms. Investors continue to

enthuse about the AI theme and remain fascinated by the rate of

spending," said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.

At 08:24 a.m., Dow E-minis were up 58 points, or

0.12%, S&P 500 E-minis were up 16.5 points, or 0.24% and

Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 106.5 points, or 0.41%.

The three major indexes have hit a series of record highs in

recent days, driven by optimism around artificial intelligence,

positive earnings momentum and expectations of rate cuts from

the U.S. central bank.

Alphabet gained 0.4%, with Meta and

Microsoft ( MSFT ) up over 0.3% each, as they head into

post-close earnings.

Market participants will seek justification for Big Tech's

towering valuations, with particular focus on whether heavy AI

spending is likely to continue or not.

Meanwhile, Boeing ( BA ) fell nearly 1% after the planemaker

reported a charge of nearly $5 billion related to delays in its

777X jet program, while Caterpillar ( CAT ) shares rose 4.9%

after beating third-quarter profit expectations.

With results in from 180 of the S&P 500 companies,

third-quarter earnings are estimated to have increased 10.5%

from the year-ago period, above earlier estimates for the

quarter, according to data compiled by LSEG as of Tuesday.

FED OUTLOOK, TRADE DEALS EYED

The Fed is widely expected to trim rates by a quarter of a

percentage point later in the day.

After nearly a month of a U.S. government shutdown that has

kept key economic data under wraps, investors will hunt for

clues on the Fed's rate path after leaning on private surveys

and corporate announcements to fill the void.

Investors will also keep an eye on any plans to end the

central bank's "quantitative tightening" policy - a long-running

effort to shrink its balance sheet.

Traders expect another quarter-point cut in December.

Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump began the final leg

of his Asia trip, saying he had reached a deal with South Korea

and was optimistic about an agreement with China's Xi Jinping.

Talks between the two counterparts are set for Thursday in the

port city of Busan.

Among other stock moves, Verizon rose 4% after

beating estimates for quarterly profit and wireless subscriber

additions.

Centene Corporation ( CNC ) posted a surprise third-quarter

profit, sending shares jumping 9.7%.

Seagate Technology ( STX ) shares rose 6.4% after the

company forecast second-quarter earnings above Wall Street

estimates.

Peers Sandisk ( SNDK ) rose 6.4%, while Western Digital ( WDC )

gained 4.9%

Mondelez International ( MDLZ ) cut its annual profit

forecast on Tuesday, sending the Cadbury maker's shares down

4.8%, while Fiserv ( FI ) slumped 37% after lowering its annual

earnings forecasts for the second consecutive quarter.