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U.S./Iran Talks, AI Disruption Dominate Markets
Tom White
February 17, 2026
U.S. stock futures are slightly lower in premarket trading as Wall Street struggles to regain its footing after yet another losing week. The benchmark S&P 500 (SPX) fell 1.4% last week as tech continues to weigh on the overall market.
The S&P 500 is coming off its second consecutive losing week as fears about AI’s disruption hit industries such as software, real estate, trucking and financial services.
Those concerns appeared to overshadow the latest consumer price index reading released Friday with the headline CPI data softer than expected at 2.4% year over year. Investors will get more insight into the path of inflation this week, with the personal consumption expenditure report slated for Friday.
Traders will also be watching earnings with results due from Palo Alto (PANW), DoorDash (DASH) and Walmart (WMT) this week.
Morning Movers
Snapshot (as of 7 AM ET)
Oil (/CL) – Oil prices are up 1.3% near $63.70 a barrel as investors assessed risks of supply disruption after Iran conducted naval drills near the Strait of Hormuz right ahead of nuclear talks with the U.S. later in the day. U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday that he would be involved “indirectly” in the talks in Switzerland, adding he believes Tehran wants to make a nuclear deal.
Gold (/GC) – Gold prices are down about 1.8% near $4,950 and fell to a more than one-week low, pressured by a stronger dollar as investors tracked cues on geopolitics and the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy.
Bitcoin (/BTC) – The Crypto Future is down 0.7% near 68,300 in premarket trading.
VIX – The CBOE Volatility Index was down 1% on Friday and settled at 20.60 as stocks were relatively flat.
U.S. Dollar (/DX) – The dollar is up 0.4% to 97.2.
Biggest Premarket Movers (as of 7 AM ET)
Symbol | Product | Mark % Change (Winners) |
|---|---|---|
NCLH | Norwegian Cruise | +7.72% |
LH | Labcorp Holdings | +2.78% |
WBD | Warner Bros. Discovery | +2.75% |
PSKY | Paramount Skydance | +1.94% |
ALB | Albemarle | +1.44% |
Symbol | Product | Mark % Change (Losers) |
|---|---|---|
VMC | Vulcan Materials | -6.94% |
DHR | Danaher | -6.86% |
GPC | Genuine Parts | -5.54% |
GIS | General Mills | -3.39% |
MDT | Medtronic | -3.05% |
Economic Data
Time | Event |
|---|---|
8:30 AM ET | Retail Sales - Delayed Empire State Mfg. Index |
10:00 AM ET | Housing Market Index Business Inventories - Delayed |
12:45 PM ET | Fed’s Barr Speaks |
2:30 PM ET | Fed’s Daly Speaks |
Notable Earnings
Premarket | Postmarket | Premarket Tomorrow | Postmarket Tomorrow |
|---|---|---|---|
BLDR, CNH, DTE, ET, FLR, GPC, HRI, LH, LDOS, MDT, SUN, VMI, VMC, WSO | CDNS, CZR, CE, DVN, EQT, EXE, FE, HL, HUN, KVUE, LZB, PANW, RSG, TOL | ADI, BLCO, CRL, CNK, CLH, DAN, GRMN, GPN, IMO, PODD, JLL, MCO, SEDG, SAH, TX, TNL, WING | AWK, CAR, BHC, BKNG, CVNA, CF, CAKE, DASH, EBAY, EQX, FIG, HLF, HST, INVH, JACK, KGC, TAP, NDSN, NTR, OXY, OMC, RS, WH |
Upgrades/Downgrades
Freedom Capital upgrades Visa (V) to Buy from Hold
Rothschild & Co. Redburn upgrades Dollar Tree (DLTR) to Buy from Neutral
UBS upgrades Southwest Airlines (LUV) to Buy from Neutral
Rothschild & Co. Redburn downgrades Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) to Neutral from Buy
Rothschild & Co. Redburn downgrades Dollar General (DG) to Sell from Neutral
Roth Capital downgrades ConocoPhillips (COP) to Neutral from Buy
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