By Twesha Dikshit and Utkarsh Hathi

Pedestrians walk past New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., May 21, 2026. REUTERS/Jeenah Moon

(Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures rose to record highs on Tuesday, catching up ​after a public holiday, as optimism in AI-related stocks offset some concerns over Middle East ‌peace talks following recent U.S. strikes on Iran.

Iran's Tasnim news agency reported that Tehran is seeking the release of $24 billion of Iranian funds frozen overseas in the deal that's being negotiated with the U.S.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday the ​deal could "take a few days," while President Donald Trump said in a Truth Social post on ​Monday that talks with Iran were going "nicely."

"Investors still appear willing to buy dips on ⁠the assumption that the conflict ultimately de-escalates," said Daniela Hathorn, senior market analyst at Capital.com.

Brent crude oil rose ​as much as 2% and global stocks wavered as uncertainty lingered over whether a deal would be reached ​to open up shipping flows through the Strait of Hormuz.

Semiconductor stocks, which have surged on AI-driven demand, led gains in premarket trading. Marvell Technology (MRVL.O) rose 5.4%, Micron (MU.O) climbed 6.3%, while Intel (INTC.O), and Qualcomm (QCOM.O) added 2.9% and 3%, respectively.

At 06:34 a.m., Dow E-minis ​were up 273 points, or 0.54%, and S&P 500 E-minis were up 58.25 points, or 0.78%. Nasdaq ​100 E-minis were up 342.5 points, or 1.16%.

Wall Street has been trading at record highs, with upbeat earnings and confidence in ‌AI ⁠trade driving equities higher despite the ongoing conflict with Iran.

The blue-chip Dow (.DJI) became the last index to hit a record high on Friday, its first since the Iran war began, while the S&P 500 (.SPX) posted its best winning streak since December 2023.

With the earnings season nearly over, first-quarter earnings growth is expected to be 29% ​year-on-year compared with the ​16.1% estimated a month ⁠ago, according to LSEG data from Friday.

Kevin Warsh was sworn in as chair of the Federal Reserve on Friday. His appointment comes amid growing concerns about inflation, driven by ​higher oil prices, which have added to expectations of tighter global monetary policy.

Markets ​currently expect ⁠the Fed to keep rates on hold for the rest of the year, with a 25 bps rate hike seen in December.

U.S. consumer confidence data for May is expected later in the day, with higher gasoline prices due ⁠to the ​Middle East conflict expected to weigh on consumer sentiment.

Among early movers, ​Joyy (JOYY.O) jumped 12% after the Chinese social live-streaming platform posted first-quarter revenue above expectations.