Dow Jones, S&P 500 futures indicate gap-down open while Nasdaq set for flat start; Novartis, Amgen, others to watch

US futures on Wall Street like the Dow Jones and S&P 500 indicate gap-down opening on Tuesday, September 8, while the Nasdaq 100 index is likely to open flat as investors remain cautious with crude oil prices nearing $100 per barrel (bbl) amid heightened tensions in West Asia.

Investing.com data showed that the Dow Jones futures were trading 0.81% lower at 53,011 points ahead of the opening bell on Tuesday’s market, indicating a more than 400-point lower opening in comparison to the previous Wall Street close.

The S&P 500 index futures were trading 0.30% lower at 7,698.75 points ahead of the market open on September 8, indicating an around 20-point lower opening, as per the exchange data.

The data also showed that the Nasdaq 100 futures were trading flat at 29,564 points ahead of the market opening, indicating a potentially flat opening when compared to the previous US equity market close.

Wall Street is set to re-open today after a scheduled Labor Day holiday on Monday, September 7, 2026.

Key things to watch before US market opens

US stocks to watch on Tuesday, September 8

Asian markets end in red

The Asian market indices largely ended lower after their trading session on Tuesday, September 8, as investors reacted to the elevated crude oil prices nearing $100 per barrel (bbl) amid the hawkish stance radiating from the US economy.

MarketWatch data showed that Japan’s Nikkei 225 index closed 1.7% lower, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng ended 0.38% lower, India’s SENSEX ended 0.73% lower, South Korea’s KOSPI closed 0.58%, and Singapore’s FTSE ended 0.43% lower on Tuesday’s market.

Bucking the trend, the Shanghai Composite ended 0.20% higher at 3,940.55 points after Tuesday’s market as investors traded based on the better-than-expected export numbers in August.

Crude oil jumps to near 15-week high

Data showed that the global crude oil prices touched its highest level in nearly 15 weeks since May 27, 2026 on Tuesday’s market.

Crude oil prices surged to more than $99 per barrel (bbl) during the trading session on Tuesday, September 8, as investors focused on the escalating geopolitical conflict between the United States and Iran.

Investing.com data showed that global benchmark Brent crude oil prices rallied 2.5% to $99.45 per bbl on Tuesday’s market, in comparison to $97 per bbl at the previous commodity market close.

Latest media reports from CNN showed that the United States has reportedly abandoned talks with Iran for an aggressive economic pressure campaign and now have turned back to threatening military attacks in the region.

While dismissing the June ceasefire agreement, US President Donald Trump called the deal not worth the paper it was written on, while Tehran and America continue to clash over multiple factions.

Over the weekend, American forces carried out three military strikes on Iranian crude oil carriers in response to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) launching missiles towards US Navy warships.

How did US markets end on Friday last week?

The equity market indices in the United States ended lower after their trading session on Friday, September 4, despite the higher-than-expected labour market report which showed that the US non-farm payrolls rose by 162,000 in August 2026, while the unemployment rate held at 4.1% in the same period.

Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 0.51% lower at 53,414.25 points, the S&P 500 index ended 0.38% lower at 7,718.60 points, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 index ended 0.21% lower at 29,544 points after the trading session on Friday, September 4.