US stock futures moved higher in early trading as investors responded to signs of diplomatic progress in the Middle East and a string of better-than-expected corporate earnings. The combination gave equity markets a dual catalyst, with geopolitical risk sentiment easing while fundamental support from earnings season provided additional floor under prices. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average and Nasdaq both edged upward, reflecting broad-based optimism across large-cap and technology-oriented names. Diplomatic developments in the Middle East tend to reduce risk premiums embedded in energy prices and equity volatility gauges, which mechanically supports risk asset valuations. Strong earnings, meanwhile, signal that corporate margins and revenue trajectories are holding up better than feared, reinforcing the bull case heading into the next phase of the reporting season. Traders will now focus on whether further earnings results confirm the trend and whether Middle East talks produce durable agreements capable of sustaining the current sentiment shift.
Indian startups raised $5.2 billion across 501 deals in H1 2026, down 9% in value but up 7% in deal count year-on-year, per the Inc42 Indian Tech Startup Funding Report. The drop is driven by fewer mega-rounds, while AI funding surged 317% and growth-stage deal activity hit a multi-year high.
The BSE Sensex fell 893 points and the Nifty 50 shed 279 points on June 30, 2026, wiping out roughly Rs 6 lakh crore in investor wealth in a single session. Both indices dropped 1.16%, closing at 76,200.68 and 23,824.10 respectively.
Kotak Mahindra Bank shares fell nearly 3% to Rs 397.6 after CEO Ashok Vaswani announced plans to exit the bank. Investor concern now centres on succession timing and whether the bank's ongoing digital and deposit-growth strategy will stay on track.
South Korea's Kospi dropped 3% at Monday's open while Japan's Nikkei fell 1%, as escalating US-Iran conflict triggered a broad risk-off move across Asian markets. South Korea's heavy reliance on Middle East oil imports makes it especially vulnerable to geopolitical shocks of this kind.
