Investing.com - U.S. stock futures pointed to a lower open on Tuesday morning, as investors returning from the long Labor Day weekend got their first chance to react to heightened tension on the Korean peninsula.
The blue-chip Dow futures shed 70 points, or about 0.3%, by 6:55AM ET (1055GMT), the S&P 500 futures fell 8 points, or around 0.3%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 futures declined 15 points, or roughly 0.2%.
U.S. markets were closed on Monday in observance of Labor Day.
Geopolitical tensions flared anew after North Korea conducted its sixth and most powerful nuclear test to date on Sunday, which it said was a successful detonation of an advanced hydrogen bomb.
On Monday, South Korea’s Defense Ministry said that Pyongyang is making preparations for the possible launch of another intercontinental ballistic missile. Many experts have been preparing for a weapons test around Sept. 9, when North Korea marks the anniversary of its foundation in 1948.
In response, the U.S. told the United Nations that Pyongyang was "begging for war," before urging the 15-member Security Council to respond with the "strongest possible measures" against the isolated regime.
Meanwhile, market players awaited comments from a number of key Federal Reserve officials, which may help set the tone for the central bank's Sept. 20 policy decision.
FOMC member Lael Brainard is due to speak about the economic outlook and monetary policy at the Economic Club of New York at around 7:30AM ET (1130GMT). Minneapolis Fed chief Neel Kashkari and Dallas Fed President Robert Kaplan are also on the docket.
On the data front, the only major release is a report on factory orders for July, due at 10:00AM ET (1400GMT).
Markets remain skeptical the Fed will raise rates a third time this year due to worries over the subdued inflation outlook, but it is widely expected to start the process of reducing its balance sheet sometime this fall.
Among active pre-market movers, United Technologies (NYSE:UTX) shares dropped around 3% after the aerospace supplier struck a $30 billion agreement to buy avionics and interiors maker Rockwell Collins (NYSE:COL).
Across the Atlantic, European stocks were higher across the board, rebounding from North Korean-fueled losses from Monday. Earlier, in Asia, markets closed on a relatively mixed to positive note.
Looking to commodities, gold prices rose to their highest level in around a year, as demand for safe-haven assets remained strong in the wake of North Korea's most powerful nuclear test to date.
Elsewhere, oil prices ticked higher, as demand picked up and U.S. refineries started to resume operations. Gasoline futures meanwhile continued to fall as initial fears of a serious supply crunch faded.