Dow futures show a slight increase as traders anticipate an update on U.S. employment figures, which may contribute to a developing picture of a slowing labor market. Software group Oracle is poised to deliver its report, potentially offering fresh insights into the artificial intelligence surge. Teck Resources and Anglo American decide to combine, while ASML invests $1.5 billion in the French artificial intelligence startup Mistral AI.

Dow futures indicated an upward trend on Tuesday, as investors prepared for the upcoming preliminary nonfarm payrolls benchmark estimate and anticipated important inflation data later this week. As of 03:42, the S&P 500 futures contract increased by 15 points, representing a 0.2% rise, while Nasdaq 100 futures saw a gain of 69 points, or 0.3%. Additionally, Dow futures moved up by 81 points, equating to a 0.2% increase. The primary indices experienced an uptick in the previous session, notably with the tech-focused Nasdaq Composite achieving a new record high close. Supporting the sentiment were anticipations that the Federal Reserve will soon lower interest rates to assist a potentially slowing U.S. labor market. Shares in retail trading app Robinhood and software publishers group AppLovin both rose following the announcement of their inclusion in the S&P 500 index. Chipmaker Broadcom also gained 3.2%, marking its latest increase as the firm stated it expects robust revenue growth driven by artificial intelligence. The current market capitalization stands at $1.6 trillion, making it the seventh most-valuable company in the financial sector.

Market participants are anticipating valuable information regarding the state of the U.S. job market with the upcoming release of the government’s initial nonfarm payrolls benchmark estimate on Tuesday. Analysts are forecasting that U.S. job numbers for the year ending in March could see a reduction of up to one million positions. This would serve as another sign of a softening labor market, and it may even imply that the trend was starting to unfold prior to President Donald Trump’s introduction of his extensive “reciprocal” import tariffs on various nations in early April. Experts have observed that a significant enforcement on unauthorized immigration might be influencing the slowing job market, alongside the impact of AI reducing the need for specific labor roles. The update from the Bureau of Labor Statistics follows last week’s data indicating that job growth in August fell short of expectations, marking the first decline in roles in 4-1/2 years in June. The data strongly supports expectations that the Fed is poised to reduce interest rates by a minimum of 25 basis points at its forthcoming policy meeting next week.

On Tuesday, the earnings calendar will feature Oracle, which is set to announce its latest quarterly returns following the closing bell. Investors will be eager to find out if Oracle offers further insights into the current surge of excitement surrounding artificial intelligence. In a communication to clients, analysts highlighted that two figures from the company will be particularly significant – backlog, indicated by remaining performance obligations, and free cash flow. We expects the former to be around $150 billion. The latter is projected to reach $1.8 billion, bouncing back from a negative cash flow of $2.9 billion in the previous quarter, attributed to a reduction in capital expenditures. In June, Oracle raised its annual revenue outlook, pointing to robust demand for its cloud services that assist companies in improving their AI infrastructure. Safra Catz informed analysts that total revenue for fiscal 2026 would reach a minimum of $67 billion. This indicates a projected full-year revenue growth of approximately 16.7%, an increase from Oracle’s earlier forecast of 15%.

Anglo American and Teck Resources have reached an agreement to merge, resulting in a combined entity valued at over $53 billion, positioning it among the leading copper producers globally. The transaction will establish a new entity named Anglo Teck, occurring as miners aim to secure their stakes in a metal that has become essential for the shift towards renewable energy sources and the data centers that support AI models. The demand for copper is anticipated to grow swiftly. Both companies operate copper mines in Chile that are next to one another. According to the agreement, Anglo American, listed in London, will possess approximately 62.4% of the merged entity, whereas Teck from Canada will retain 37.6%.

ASML announced on Tuesday that it has reached an agreement with Mistral AI, where the Dutch chipmaking equipment leader has invested 1.3 billion euros to secure its position as the primary shareholder in the French AI start-up. ASML has formed a strategic alliance with Mistral, enabling the semiconductor company to investigate the application of AI models throughout its product range and within its research and development activities. ASML is set to invest in Mistral during the start-up’s series C funding round, acquiring an estimated 11% ownership in the company. With the fundraising round – at $2 billion – poised to position Mistral as the most valuable company in Europe with a $10 billion euro valuation ($11.7 billion). ASML, a producer of sophisticated lithography machinery essential for semiconductor fabrication, serves as a vital provider to industry leaders like TSMC and Intel. ASML, in conjunction with TSMC, has experienced a surge due to the swiftly rising demand for chips associated with the AI sector. Mistral is viewed as Europe’s counterpart to American AI leaders like OpenAI and Alphabet’s Google.