* Futures: Dow up 0.18%, S&P flat, Nasdaq down 0.06%
* Investors focus on first Fed meet under Warsh
* Qualcomm ( QCOM ) shares gain after report of talks to buy
Tenstorrent
(Updates before market opens)
By Sruthi Shankar and Twesha Dikshit
June 16 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks were set for a subdued open
on Tuesday as investors were cautious ahead of the first
interest rate decision under new Federal Reserve Chair Kevin
Warsh.
Gains in some technology stocks helped limit early losses.
Shares of SpaceX climbedalmost 5%, putting the
companyon the verge of overtaking Amazon's ( AMZN ) market value
to become the world's fifth-most valuable firm.
The Elon Musk-led company said it would acquire software
firm Anysphere for $60 billion in a bid to ramp up its presence
in the enterprise AI market.
Memory chip stocks rose, with Western Digital ( WDC ) and
Seagate Technology ( STX ) adding 5.7% and 4.3%, respectively.
The blue-chip Dow closed at a record high on Monday
after U.S. President Donald Trump said a preliminary agreement
to end the conflict had been signed by the U.S. and Iran,
sending oil prices sharply lower and easing concerns about
inflation.
Still, doubts swirled around the deal as shippers said it
could take weeks for confidence to return after any reopening of
the Strait of Hormuz.
The Fed is widely expected to hold interest rates at the
3.50-3.75% range at the end of its policy meeting on Wednesday,
with investors closely watching Warsh's comments on inflation,
unemployment and the economic outlook, potentially market-moving
words of the world's most important central banker.
"All eyes are on Warsh's press conference, guidance and
expectations for the market. But given the (U.S.-Iran) deal
seems to be inked he has a little bit more latitude to be
balanced," said Thomas Hayes, chairman at Great Hill Capital.
"Historically, the market gets tested with a new Fed chair
in the first year or so. There's usually some market
volatility."
Inflation, in particular, seems stuck more than a percentage
point above the Fed's 2% target, and Warsh's characterization of
whether and when it is likely to fall will be a key first step
in the evolution of monetary policy under his leadership.
Traders see a 42% chance of a 25-basis-point rate hike in
December, as per CME Group's FedWatch tool, with rate cuts seen
coming only after mid-2027.
The Bank of Japan raised interest rates to a 31-year high
earlier on Tuesday, as it focused on taming price pressures from
the energy shock caused by the Iran war.
At 8:36 a.m. ET, S&P 500 e-minis were down 1.75
points, or 0.02%. Nasdaq 100 e-minis slipped 18 points,
or 0.06%, and Dow e-minis inched up 95 points, or 0.18%.
The benchmark S&P 500 was also closing in on early
June record highs after a slump driven by concerns about high
valuations in the technology sector and the U.S.-Iran conflict.
Qualcomm ( QCOM ) rose 3.2% after the Information reported
that the chipmaker was in talks to acquire AI chip startup
Tenstorrent for $8 billion to $10 billion.
Shares of Olin climbed 5.8% after the chemical
producer said it would acquire Huntsman in an all-stock
deal valued at about $2.43 billion. Huntsman shares fell 5.7% as
the offer stood at a discount to the stock's last price.
Robinhood was up 1.6% as the trading platform said
it would cut 10% of its full-time workforce and close remaining
open roles.