Wall Street Might Open Lower

(RTTNews) - Iran is continuing with direct or high-level proxy strikes on Tuesday, while the 'de-escalation' efforts are facing a significant collapse in the Middle East conflict.

In the Asian trading session, gold prices traded higher, Spot gold jumped 0.9 percent to $4,691.99 an ounce.

Oil prices fluctuated on Tuesday, Brent crude futures for June delivery were down half a percent at $109.26.

Asian shares finished mostly up, while European shares are trading broadly lower.

Early trends from the U.S. Futures Index suggest that Wall Street might open lower.

As of 7.45 am ET, the Dow futures were down 227.00 points, the S&P 500 futures were declining 32.50 points and the Nasdaq 100 futures were sliding 153.00 points.

The U.S. major averages finished up on Monday. The Nasdaq advanced 117.16 points or 0.5 percent to 21,996.34, the S&P 500 climbed 29.14 points or 0.4 percent to 6,611.83 and the Dow rose 165.21 points or 0.4 percent to 46,669.88.

On the economic front, the Durable Goods Orders for February will be issued at 8.30 am ET. The consensus for new orders is a decline of 0.2 percent, while it was 0.0 percent in the prior month.

Three-year Treasury Note auction will be held at 1.00 pm ET.

The Consumer Credit for February will be released at 3.00 pm ET. The consensus is $12 billion, while it was up $8.1 billion in the prior month.

Eight-week Treasury bill auction will be held at 11.00 am ET.

Asian stocks ended mostly higher on Tuesday. China's Shanghai Composite index edged up by 0.26 percent to 3,890.16.

Japanese markets ended on a flat note. The Nikkei average finished marginally higher at 53,429.56 while the broader Topix index settled 0.25 percent higher at 3,654.02.

Australian markets rallied. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 jumped 1.74 percent to 8,728.80. The broader All Ordinaries index closed up 1.67 percent at 8,921.20.

European shares are trading lower. Among the major indexes in the region, the CAC 40 Index of France is declining 131.42 points or 2.10 percent. The German DAX is sliding 244.11 points or 1.78 percent, the U.K. FTSE 100 Index is losing 143.00 points or 1.92 percent.

The Swiss Market Index is declining 207.39 points or 1.77 percent. The Euro Stoxx 50 Index, which is a compilation of 50 blue chip stocks across the euro area, is down 2.17 percent.