Alphabet share price was marginally up at $348.55 by 0.66 per cent after S&P Global said the Google-parent would join the Dow Jones Industrial Average, replacing Verizon Communications. Memory chipmakers moved higher in premarket trading, following a sharp plunge in the previous session, with Micron Technology and Sandisk stocks adding 3.8 per cent and 2.9 per cent, respectively. Dow E-minis were down 50 points, or 0.1 per cent, and S&P 500 E-minis were up 15.5 points, or 0.21 per cent. Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 164.25 points, or 0.55 per cent.
The choppy backdrop in equities has intensified focus on Micron's results after the bell, as it is a key beneficiary of surging demand from companies investing billions in AI infrastructure. The stock has surged more than 268 per cent in 2026, despite a 13 per cent drop on Tuesday.
Among early movers, Cerebras Systems stocks tumbled 13.3 per cent after the chip designer forecast full-year profit margins would drop below first-quarter figures in its debut report after going public. FedEx share price slid 7.1 per cent after reporting that margins in its core delivery segment shrank in the latest quarter from a year earlier.
"We will all be looking at Micron since that is a representation of what we've seen in this rally. I think people are going to get the blowout quarter that they expect, but I don't expect the stock to continue to rise," said Jay Woods, chief market strategist at Freedom Capital Markets. "It's fallen (after) six of its last eight earnings reports, even though Micron has reported blowout earnings," Woods said.
Investors continued to monitor Middle East developments after the U.S. and Iran offered conflicting accounts on a range of key issues including financial incentives for Iran, control over the Strait of Hormuz and Israel's war in Lebanon.
Optimism surrounding an end to the war and strong earnings growth expectations have put the S&P 500 on track for its strongest quarterly gain in six years, despite expectations of higher interest rates.
Traders are adding to bets of a second rate hike from the Fed by December-end, according to CME Group's FedWatch tool, from prior expectations of a single 25-basis-point rise, after new chair Kevin Warsh emphasized the need to curb inflation.
The closely watched Personal Consumption Expenditures Price Index, the Fed's preferred inflation gauge, could offer fresh insight on the monetary policy path on Thursday. Economists expect a rise to 4.1 per cent, more than twice the central bank's target.
