US equity futures were lower pre-bell Wednesday as the US and Iran once again exchanged attacks after a US Army Apache helicopter was shot down, raising tensions in the Middle East.

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were 0.9% lower, S&P 500 futures were down 1.1%, and Nasdaq futures were 1.6% lower.

US Central Command said in an X post that it launched "self-defense strikes" against Iran as a "proportional response to unjustified Iranian aggression," responding to the downing of a US Army helicopter. Iran, which did not claim responsibility for shooting down the chopper, responded with attacks on Bahrain, Kuwait, and Jordan.

In a post on Truth Social, US President Donald Trump said that Iran has been "completely defeated." Trump added, "They've taken too long to negotiate a deal that would have been great for them, now they will have to pay the price!!!"

Traders look forward to Oracle's (ORCL) fiscal Q4 financial results, scheduled to be released after the market closes.

Oil prices were higher, with front-month global benchmark North Sea Brent crude up 1.7% at $93.04 per barrel and US West Texas Intermediate crude 2% higher at $89.93 per barrel.

The May consumer price index, scheduled for release at 8:30 am ET, is seen coming in at 0.5%, compared with 0.6% in the prior month, according to estimates compiled by Bloomberg.