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Futures down: Dow 0.63%, S&P 500 0.62%, Nasdaq 0.63%

June 17 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures edged lower

on Tuesday as conflict in the Middle East entered its fifth day,

dampening global investor confidence ahead of the Federal

Reserve's upcoming policy meeting.

Iran and Israel's air war, which began on Friday when Israel

attacked Iran's nuclear facilities, has raised concerns that the

conflict could create bottlenecks for oil exports from the

oil-rich Middle East.

U.S. energy stocks rose in premarket trading as oil prices

remained elevated on the uncertainty. Shares of Chevron ( CVX )

and Exxon were up nearly 1% each.

The surge in oil prices comes ahead of the Fed's monetary

policy decision on Wednesday, when policymakers are widely

expected to keep interest rates unchanged.

Money market moves show traders are pricing in about 48

basis points of rate cuts by the end of 2025, with a 59% chance

of a 25-bps rate cut in September, according to CME Group's

Fedwatch tool.

At 5:33 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were down 269 points,

or 0.63%, S&P 500 E-minis were down 37.25 points, or

0.62%. Nasdaq 100 E-minis were down 138.5 points, or

0.63%

U.S. Senate Republicans late on Monday unveiled proposed

changes to President Donald Trump's sweeping tax-cut bill that

had cleared the House of Representatives in May.

"The Senate's version of tax legislation looks broadly

similar to the House-passed version in its near-term fiscal

effects but would likely cost ... a few hundred billion dollars

more over the next decade," said Goldman Sachs strategists in a

note.

Solar stocks dipped after the Senate's changes to Trump's

tax-cut bill revealed a phase-out of solar, wind and energy tax

credits by 2028.

Shares of Enphase Energy ( ENPH ), which makes solar

inverters, dropped 17%. Solar panel sellers Sunrun ( RUN ) fell

27.5% and SolarEdge Technologies ( SEDG ) dropped more than

21.6%. First Solar ( FSLR ) lost nearly 11%.

Shares of nuclear power companies rose after the Senate

extended credits for nuclear energy to 2036. Oklo ( OKLO ) was

up 1.9% and Nano Nuclear Energy ( NNE ) rose 2.2%.

As investors flock to traditional safe-haven assets amid

heightened geopolitical uncertainty, a rise in U.S. Treasuries

pushed yields lower across the curve. Yields on the benchmark

10-year fell about 3 basis points to 4.42%.

Among other movers, Eli Lilly ( LLY ) is in advanced talks

to acquire gene editing startup Verve Therapeutics ( VERV ) for

up to $1.3 billion, according to a report. Shares of the

drugmaker fell 1.2%, while Verve advanced 82.9%.

Key data for the day includes monthly retail sales and

import prices scheduled at 08:30 a.m. ET.