US pre-open: Futures rise as US reportedly sends 15‑point plan to Iran

25th Mar 2026 11:26

(Sharecast News) - Wall Street futures were in the green ahead of the bell on Wednesday following news that the US had reportedly sent a 15-point plan to Iran as it looks to resolve the conflict in the Middle East.

As of 1215 GMT, Dow Jones futures were up 1.08%, while S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 futures had the indices opening 1.01% and 1.21% firmer, respectively.

The Dow closed 84.41 points lower on Tuesday, taking a bite out of gains recored in the previous session, as oil prices resumed their upward march amid ongoing Middle East tensions.

However, stocks traded higher in pre-market action on Wednesday after the New York Times, citing two officials briefed on the diplomacy, said the US had delivered its 15-point plan to Iran via Pakistan. The sources said it was unclear how widely the plan had been shared among Iranian officials and whether Tehran was likely to accept it as a basis for negotiations. Nor was it clear whether Israel was on board with the proposal.

However, the delivery of the plan showed that the administration was ramping up efforts to conclude a war, now in its fourth week, that has drawn in several other countries. The New York Times did not see a copy of the plan, but the officials shared some of its broad outlines, saying that it addresses Iran's ballistic missile and nuclear programs, and also discusses maritime routes.

On the macro front, US mortgage applications slumped 10.5% week-on-week in the seven days ended 20 March, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association of America, extending the previous week's 10.9% decline. Applications to purchase a new home were down 5%, while applications to refinance a mortgage, which are more sensitive to short-term changes in interest rates, nosedived 15%.

Last week's decrease came as the average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages hit a five-month high of 6.43%, while the US and Israel's war in the Persian Gulf also triggered a surge in energy prices and long-dated Treasury yields as the Federal Reserve cut their outlook for interest rate cuts this year.

Still to come, February's import and export price index data will be released at 1230 GMT.

No major corporate earnings were slated for release on Wednesday.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com