(Il Sole 24 Ore Radiocor) - Milano, 7 apr - US futures were lower ahead of a deadline for Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz or face strikes to its critical infrastructure.

Wall Street ended higher yesterday as investors assessed the chances of a ceasefire in Iran. The Dow and S&P 500 both closed up 0.4% while the tech-heavy Nasdaq added 0.5%.

US president Donald Trump repeated yesterday that the US was ready to wipe out Iranian power plants and bridges if Tehran did not reopen the Strait of Hormuz by 8 pm (ET) today.

The US and Iran have both criticised each other's cease-fire proposals but media reports said a proposal backed by mediator Pakistan is under consideration.

Investors fear failure to reach a deal in time will trigger a rapid escalation of the war and send oil prices surging.

On the stocks front, shares in health and insurance companies were higher in premarket trading after the Washington said it would increase payments to Medicare insurers. UnitedHealth was up 6%, Humana 9.4% and CVS Health 6.4%.

Futures on the Dow Jones were down 160.00 points, or 0.34%, S&P 500 futures were down 24.50 points, or 0.37%, while.

futures on the Nasdaq were down 122.50 points, or 0.50%.

(RADIOCOR) 07-04-26 13:57:13 (0357) 5 NNNN