Stock Market Today: S&P 500, Nasdaq Futures Gain As Trump Fuels De-Escalation Hopes—ASML Holding, Gitlab,

(Editor’s note: The future prices of benchmark tracking ETFs, the lede, the economic data and the headline were updated in the story.)

U.S. stocks fluctuated on Wednesday, following Tuesday’s rally. Futures of the major benchmark indices were mixed.

U.S. import prices climbed 0.8% in March, marking a 2.1% year-over-year increase—the largest annual jump since late 2024. Despite these mounting cost pressures, New York’s manufacturing sector showed unexpected resilience in April; the Empire State Manufacturing Survey’s headline index surged eleven points to 11.0, signaling a moderate expansion in business activity fueled by significant gains in new orders and shipments.

Meanwhile, the 10-year Treasury bond yielded 4.25%, and the two-year bond was at 3.76%. The CME Group’s FedWatch tool‘s projections show markets pricing a 99.5% likelihood of the Federal Reserve leaving the current interest rates unchanged in its April meeting.

Stocks In Focus

ASML Holding

• ASML Holding NV (NASDAQ:ASML) rose 1.35% in premarket on Wednesday after the company announced its first-quarter earnings, beating expectations and raising its 2026 revenue outlook.

• Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that ASML maintains a strong price trend in the short, medium, and long terms, with a solid growth score.

Terawulf

• Terawulf Inc. (NASDAQ:WULF) declined 5.16% after reporting preliminary results and announcing a common stock offering after the market closed on Tuesday.

• Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that WULF maintains a strong trend in the long, short and medium terms.

Stellantis NV

• Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that STLA maintains a weak price trend in the long and medium terms, but a strong trend in the short term.

Broadcom

• Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that AVGO maintains a strong price trend over the short, medium, and long terms, with a moderate growth score.

Gitlab

• Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that GTLB maintains a weak price trend in the short, medium, and long terms.

Cues From Last Session

Tuesday saw communication services, information technology, and consumer discretionary stocks record the biggest gains, leading most S&P 500 sectors to a positive finish, while energy and materials shares lost ground against the trend.

Insights From Analysts

According to BlackRock‘s commentary, the firm has shifted to a more aggressive stance, moving to “overweight U.S. stocks.” This tactical upgrade is driven by “contained damage to global growth from the Mideast conflict” and robust corporate earnings.

Despite the recent breakdown of U.S.-Iran negotiations, BlackRock views the attempt at diplomacy as “evidence of an economic incentive to end the conflict.”

Economically, BlackRock is monitoring the U.S. Producer Price Index (PPI) to determine if “energy-driven cost pressures keep pushing prices up.” While headline inflation has surged due to energy costs, the impact on core inflation remains limited.

However, the firm warns that “inflation is still too high” to meet the Federal Reserve’s 2% target, effectively “dimming hopes for rate cuts in 2026.”

Within the equity market, the artificial intelligence (AI) theme remains a primary driver. BlackRock notes that tech’s valuation premium has eroded, yet the sector’s earnings growth is projected at 43% for 2026. They maintain a “relative preference” for U.S. equities, believing they will hold up better even if “absolute performance disappoints.”

Upcoming Economic Data

Here’s what investors will be keeping an eye on this Wednesday.

Commodities, Crypto, And Global Equity Markets

Crude oil futures were trading lower in the early New York session by 0.04% to hover around $91.24 per barrel.

Gold Spot US Dollar fell 0.65% to hover around $4,808.13 per ounce. Its last record high stood at $5,595.46 per ounce. The U.S. Dollar Index spot was 0.11% lower at the 98.2580 level.

Meanwhile, Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) was trading 0.77% lower at $74,142.55 per coin, as per the last 24 hours.

Asian markets closed higher on Wednesday, except China’s CSI 300 index. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng, India’s Nifty 50, Australia’s ASX 200, South Korea’s Kospi, and Japan’s Nikkei 225 indices rose. European markets were mostly lower in early trade.

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