Oct 7 (Reuters) - Wall Street's main indexes were poised to open marginally higher on Tuesday as investors eased back a day after the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq hit record closing highs, with focus now shifting to a slate of Federal Reserve speakers for policy signals.
Equities have been climbing despite concerns over stretched valuations and reduced certainty around data after the federal government shutdown entered its seventh day.
Still, the pullback could be fleeting as optimism around artificial intelligence and expectations of looser monetary policy persist.
"There's this concern that maybe markets are a little bit ahead of themselves. I don't share that," said Jamie Cox, managing partner at Harris Financial Group.
Traders expect the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates by 25 basis points at its meeting later this month, due to a string of reports from last week suggesting a weakening job market.
To be sure, these reports typically carry less weight than key official data such as nonfarm payrolls, but are expected to serve as the Fed's best available option to fill the data gap left by the government shutdown.
"Since the labor market is softening, I think that will be all the justification they need to reduce the policy rate further," Cox said.
At 08:26 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were up 26 points, or 0.06%, S&P 500 E-minis rose 1.75 points, or 0.03%, and Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 27.25 points, or 0.11%.
Investors are also watching the Fed commentary more closely and some analysts expect the upcoming earnings season will grab more focus with forecasts and executive commentary likely to carry more weight in shaping expectations.
Fed Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman, Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic, Fed Governor Stephen Miran and Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari are scheduled to speak.
Among stocks, AMD (AMD.O), climbed 3.9% premarket after analyst upgrades, following a 23.7% gain in the previous session. The company bolstered the tech rally after unveiling a chip-supply deal with OpenAI on Monday.
Corona beer maker Constellation Brands (STZ.N), gained 3.3% after posting a smaller-than-expected drop in second-quarter sales.
Tesla (TSLA.O), was down 0.8% ahead of an event where it is expected to unveil a more affordable version of its best-selling Model Y SUV.
IBM (IBM.N), shares advanced 4.6% after the company announced a partnership with AI startup Anthropic.
U.S.-listed shares of Trilogy Metals more than tripled in value after the White House said it would acquire a 10% stake in the company.
Reporting by Niket Nishant and Sukriti Gupta in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika Syamnath
