Wall Street was set to begin Thursday with gains, extending a streak of record closes while markets eyed updates from U.S. President Donald Trump’s talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing

ByCHAN HO-HIM AND MATT OTT AP business writers

May 14, 2026, 1:01 AM

U.S. stocks appeared headed for an upbeat start on Thursday, capitalizing on the prior day's all-time highs as traders followed the latest from President Donald Trump's summit with China's Xi Jinping in Beijing.

S&P 500 futures increased 0.3 percent, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures rose 0.7 percent, and Nasdaq futures edged up 0.2 percent in pre-market trading. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite had both notched fresh records on Wednesday.

Oil prices held steady amid the ongoing Iran conflict, now in its third month with no resolution in sight. Optimism lingered that the Trump-Xi discussions might yield progress, especially after U.S. officials noted China's leverage over Iran through economic links to urge reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.

The White House reported Thursday that Trump and Xi explored ways to boost U.S.-China economic ties. The leaders concurred on the urgent need to restore access to the Strait of Hormuz.

Brent crude futures dipped 19 cents to $105.44 a barrel - a sharp rise from around $70 before the late-February outbreak of the Iran war. The climb followed the International Energy Agency's warning that disruptions in the strait were draining global oil stockpiles at an unprecedented rate.

U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude fell 16 cents to $100.86 per barrel.

Attention also turned to potential Chinese purchases of Nvidia's cutting-edge H200 chips, with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang joining Trump's delegation that included Tesla's Elon Musk and Apple's Tim Cook. The executives held talks with Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Thursday afternoon.

Trump and Xi convened at Beijing's Great Hall of the People to address bilateral relations and Taiwan issues, though experts anticipated no dramatic agreements.

Among stocks, Cisco Systems surged 15 percent after posting strong third-quarter sales and earnings growth. The California-based networking leader lifted its 2026 revenue outlook to $4 million from $3 million, fueled by demand for AI infrastructure.

European markets rose at midday: Britain's FTSE 100 climbed 0.5 percent following better-than-expected 0.3 percent GDP growth in March despite Iran war effects. France's CAC 40 added 0.8 percent, and Germany's DAX jumped 1.3 percent.

In Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 slipped 1 percent to 62,654.05 after touching a new intraday peak above 63,700 on solid earnings. South Korea's Kospi rallied 1.8 percent to a record 7,981.41, driven by AI-related tech gains.

China's Shanghai Composite dropped 1.5 percent to 4,177.92, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng ended flat at 26,389.04.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 nudged 0.1 percent higher to 8,640.70.

Taiwan's Taiex gained 0.9 percent, and India's Sensex rose 1.1 percent.