Premarket movements on Wednesday, May 27th, showed U.S. stock index futures advancing. At the time of writing, Dow Jones futures were up 0.28%, S&P 500 futures rose 0.34%, and Nasdaq futures gained 0.66%.

European markets also traded higher, with Germany's DAX up 0.32%, the UK's FTSE 100 up 0.11%, France's CAC 40 up 0.80%, and the Euro Stoxx 50 up 0.77%. In commodities, WTI crude oil fell 3.35% to $90.74 per barrel, while Brent crude declined 2.38% to $94.37 per barrel.

Significant developments emerged in the U.S.-Iran conflict. A member of Iran's National Security Council stated that, based on a preliminary draft agreement with the U.S., the American side has committed to a comprehensive 60-day ceasefire on all fronts, particularly within Lebanon. The agreement also reportedly includes provisions for releasing a significant portion of Iran's frozen assets and ending a maritime blockade. Concurrently, a senior Iranian naval official stated that while the possibility of renewed war with the U.S. is "low," the country's armed forces are fully prepared.

Goldman Sachs remains bullish on U.S. equities, raising its year-end 2026 target for the S&P 500 to 8000 from 7600, citing sustained corporate earnings strength. The firm noted that all of the S&P 500's year-to-date returns have been driven by profit growth, a trend expected to continue. It also raised its S&P 500 earnings per share forecasts to $340 for 2026 and $385 for 2027. Goldman Sachs attributed roughly half of this year's S&P 500 profit growth to companies benefiting from AI infrastructure investment, which it believes will help offset risks from weak consumer spending and high costs.

Citadel Securities has urged the Federal Reserve to pivot towards a tighter monetary policy stance to combat inflation, warning that the central bank risks falling behind the curve. The firm's head of fixed income sales for EMEA argued that inflation, not the labor market, now poses the greater risk and that the Fed should adjust its stance promptly. Citadel's models suggest the current policy rate is near the neutral level, a position it views as inconsistent with market expectations for robust economic expansion.

Former New York Fed President William Dudley warned that the Fed risks losing its anti-inflation credibility after failing to meet its 2% target for over five years. He expressed concern that inflation expectations could become unanchored and highlighted the risk of a potential Fed chair nominee being pressured to cut rates against economic fundamentals, further undermining the central bank's credibility.

Investment bank Piper Sandler expressed skepticism about an imminent U.S.-Iran deal, advising clients that the Strait of Hormuz is likely to remain largely closed, which could drive oil prices to new highs this summer. The firm's energy and macro team stated they have little confidence that commercial traffic through the strait will recover to even 50% of pre-crisis levels in the near term.

In individual stock news, commercial space stocks surged premarket, continuing a rally fueled by SpaceX's momentum and boosted by NASA's newly announced roadmap for lunar base construction. Shares of Momentus Inc. (MNTS.US) soared over 50%, while Redwire Corporation (RDW.US) and Intuitive Machines, Inc. (LUNR.US) gained nearly 15%. Other notable gainers included York Space Systems (YSS.US), MDA Space Ltd. (MDA.US), Firefly Aerospace Inc. (FLY.US), Rocket Lab USA, Inc. (RKLB.US), Voyager Technologies Inc. (VOYG.US), and AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (ASTS.US).

Memory chip stocks also traded higher premarket. Micron Technology, Inc. (MU.US) jumped over 8%, while Seagate Technology Holdings plc (STX.US) and Western Digital Corporation (WDC.US) rose nearly 5%. SanDisk Corporation (SNDK.US) gained over 3%.

Ahead of a potential $2 trillion IPO, Elon Musk has reportedly personally discussed merging SpaceX with Tesla, Inc. (TSLA.US), according to sources familiar with the matter. The two companies already share resources, and the topic of a merger has been openly discussed within Tesla, with many employees long expecting such a deal. Shared challenges in power and computing have also driven increased collaboration between the firms.

Lithium giant Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile S.A. (SQM.US) reported a more than doubling of its first-quarter profit and raised its full-year lithium sales volume forecast, citing strong demand from battery energy storage systems. Adjusted EBITDA for the quarter reached $837 million. The company sold approximately 69,000 metric tons of lithium carbonate equivalent and now expects full-year sales volume growth of about 15%, up from a prior 10% forecast.

Pinduoduo Inc. (PDD.US) released its Q1 2026 earnings, reporting revenue of 106.2 billion yuan, an 11% year-over-year increase. The growth was attributed to continued strategic investments. The company also highlighted the formal establishment of its new brand business unit in Shanghai and ongoing efforts to support merchants and supply chain upgrades.

Kingsoft Cloud Holdings Limited (KC.US) reported Q1 revenue of 2.70 billion yuan, a 37.2% year-over-year increase. The company maintained a trajectory of high-quality growth, with adjusted gross profit and adjusted EBITDA showing significant improvement. Both its public cloud and industry cloud businesses achieved year-over-year growth.

Agora, Inc. (API.US) reported Q1 revenue of $37.7 million, a 13.5% year-over-year increase, and achieved its sixth consecutive quarter of GAAP profitability with net income of $1.1 million. Gross profit was $23.9 million, with a gross margin of 63.4%.

Earnings are scheduled for release Thursday morning from Marvell Technology, Inc. (MRVL.US), Salesforce, Inc. (CRM.US), Synopsys, Inc. (SNPS.US), HP Inc. (HPQ.US), and Noah Holdings Limited (NOAH.US). Thursday's premarket session will feature reports from Best Buy Co., Inc. (BBY.US), Kohl's Corporation (KSS.US), Li Auto Inc. (LI.US), XPeng Inc. (XPEV.US), Futu Holdings Limited (FUTU.US), Weibo Corporation (WB.US), and Autohome Inc. (ATHM.US).