Fed Kicks Off Policy Meeting as US Equity Futures Tread Water Pre-Bell

09:10 AM EDT, 03/17/2026 (MT Newswires) -- US equity futures were little changed ahead of Tuesday's opening bell as traders stayed on the sidelines while the Federal Reserve begins its two-day policy meeting.

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were 0.3% higher, S&P 500 futures were up 0.2% and Nasdaq futures were 0.1% higher.

Rising oil prices, hovering near $100 per barrel, are expected to be a key point of discussion for policymakers given their implications for inflation.

Oil prices were higher, with front-month global benchmark North Sea Brent crude up 2.5% at $102.67 per barrel and US West Texas Intermediate crude 3% higher at $95.19 per barrel.

The February pending home sales index, scheduled for release at 10 am ET, is expected to show a 0.6% decline following a 0.8% decrease in the prior month, according to estimates compiled by Bloomberg.

In other world markets, Japan's Nikkei closed 0.09% lower, Hong Kong's Hang Seng ended 0.1% higher, and China's Shanghai Composite finished 0.9% lower. Meanwhile, the UK's FTSE 100 was up 0.8%, and Germany's DAX index was 0.5% higher in Europe's early afternoon session.

In equities, Elbit Systems (ESLT) shares were 6% higher pre-bell after the company reported higher Q4 adjusted earnings and revenue. Citi Trends (CTRN) stock was up 15% after the company reported it swung to fiscal Q4 earnings amid higher sales.

On the losing side, shares of Lensar (LNSR) and Alcon (ALC) were down 25% and 1%, respectively, a day after the companies said they have terminated their planned merger.

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