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Futures up: Dow 0.06%, S&P 500 0.03%, Nasdaq 0.11%

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Constellation Brands' ( STZ ) Q2 sales dip less than expected

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Trilogy Metals shares soar as US takes strategic stake

(Updates before markets open)

By Niket Nishant and Sukriti Gupta

Oct 7 (Reuters) - Wall Street's main indexes were poised

to open marginally higher on Tuesday as investors eased back a

day after the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq hit record closing highs,

with focus now shifting to a slate of Federal Reserve speakers

for policy signals.

Equities have been climbing despite concerns over stretched

valuations and reduced certainty around data after the federal

government shutdown entered its seventh day.

Still, the pullback could be fleeting as optimism around

artificial intelligence and expectations of looser monetary

policy persist.

"There's this concern that maybe markets are a little bit

ahead of themselves. I don't share that," said Jamie Cox,

managing partner at Harris Financial Group.

Traders expect the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates by

25 basis points at its meeting later this month, due to a string

of reports from last week suggesting a weakening job market.

To be sure, these reports typically carry less weight than

key official data such as nonfarm payrolls, but are expected to

serve as the Fed's best available option to fill the data gap

left by the government shutdown.

"Since the labor market is softening, I think that will be

all the justification they need to reduce the policy rate

further," Cox said.

At 08:26 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were up 26 points, or

0.06%, S&P 500 E-minis rose 1.75 points, or 0.03%, and

Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 27.25 points, or 0.11%.

Investors are also watching the Fed commentary more

closely and some analysts expect the upcoming earnings season

will grab more focus with forecasts and executive commentary

likely to carry more weight in shaping expectations.

Fed Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman, Atlanta Fed

President Raphael Bostic, Fed Governor Stephen Miran and

Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari are scheduled to speak.

Among stocks, AMD climbed 3.9% premarket after

analyst upgrades, following a 23.7% gain in the previous

session. The company bolstered the tech rally after unveiling a

chip-supply deal with OpenAI on Monday.

Corona beer maker Constellation Brands ( STZ ) gained 3.3%

after posting a smaller-than-expected drop in second-quarter

sales.

Tesla was down 0.8% ahead of an event where it is

expected to unveil a more affordable version of its best-selling

Model Y SUV.

IBM ( IBM ) shares advanced 4.6% after the company announced

a partnership with AI startup Anthropic.

U.S.-listed shares of Trilogy Metals more than

tripled in value after the White House said it would acquire a

10% stake in the company.

(Reporting by Niket Nishant and Sukriti Gupta in Bengaluru;

Editing by Devika Syamnath)