Stock futures fell on Wednesday after a hotter-than-expected producer price index reading and as traders awaited the Federal Reserve’s rate policy decision. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 268 points, or 0.6%. S&P 500 futures fell 0.5%, as did Nasdaq 100 futures. The producer price index — which tracks the change in wholesale prices — rose 0.7% in February, well above the 0.3% that economists polled by Dow Jones had estimated. The report shows that inflation was already in a precarious spot prior to the Iran war breaking out — an event that has heightened stagflation fears amid rising oil prices. “The hotter than expected number is specific to tariffs,” Todd M. Schoenberger, CIO at CrossCheck Management LLC, said, noting that metals, industrial inputs and manufacturing costs are all seeing higher prices. “This is structural inflation, not temporary, and is likely going to impact monetary policy deep into the third quarter.” “Add in the hotter energy prices we’ve seen since the Iran War began, which have yet to show in these reports, and Wall Street is bracing for rapidly rising prices that will clearly flow down to the consumer level,” Schoenberger continued. The moves come a day after the major stock averages were able to shrug off a rise in oil prices. The Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq each closed higher on Tuesday. Oil, meanwhile, popped after President Donald Trump said in a Truth Social post that the U.S. did not need help from NATO allies in the Middle East. The president’s comments came after he signaled on Monday that a coalition may be formed to help protect ships attempting to travel through the Strait of Hormuz, though some countries were “less than enthusiastic” to participate. A wave of Iranian attacks on the United Arab Emirates’ energy infrastructure also sparked fears about crude and fuel shipping. Investors are now looking ahead to the Fed’s interest rate decision expected on Wednesday. Markets are expecting the central bank to keep interest rates unchanged in a range between 3.5% to 3.75%. Traders will be watching for any guidance from Fed Chair Jerome Powell on whether oil prices could impact future monetary policy “Markets continue to trade with some hesitation ahead of [Wednesday’s] Fed decision and elevated oil prices. While the Fed is likely to hold rates steady [Wednesday’s], investors will be looking to see how policymakers frame the Iran conflict in the context of inflation risks and potential impacts on the growth outlook,” said Anthony Saglimbene, chief market strategist at Ameriprise Financial. Saglimbene said he also believes the healthy earnings backdrop is also lending fundamental support for U.S. stocks, which he said investors may be looking at closely this week amid elevated geopolitical uncertainty tied to Iran, as well as artificial intelligence disruption fears. Jeff Buchbinder, LPL chief equity strategist, similarly said he thinks that a solid economy, “more reasonable” valuations and good corporate fundamentals continue to support investor sentiment. With respect to earnings, eyes are on Micron Technology, as the chipmaker is slated to release its latest quarterly results after the bell Wednesday. The stock has been on a tear this year, rallying nearly 62% amid soaring demand for high-bandwidth memory. Treasury yields pushed higher Wednesday as investors took stock of a hotter-than-expected wholesale price report for February and awaited the Federal Reserve’s next policy statement on interest rates and the economy, due at 2 p.m. ET. The 2-year Treasury note yield — which closely tracks expectations for Fed interest rate moves — was almost 5 basis points higher, at 3.716%. The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield was ahead more than 1 basis point at 4.214%. The 30-year Treasury bond yield was little changed at 4.849%. Asia markets close higher with South Korea’s Kospi leading regional gains. South Korea’s Kospi led gains in Asia on Wednesday as investors assessed Japan trade data and awaited U.S. Federal Reserve’s interest rate decision. The Kospi gained over 5% to close at 5,925.03 while the small-cap Kosdaq was up 2.41% to 1,164.38. Japan’s Nikkei 225 jumped 2.87% to 55,239.4 while the Topix added 2.49% to close at 3,717.41 after the country reported that exports climbed 4.2% from a year ago in February, beating estimates. Economists polled by Reuters had expected a 1.6% rise. Exports had risen 16.8% jump in the previous month. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was 0.31% higher, ending the trading day at 8,640.6. Hong Kong Hang Seng index was up 0.66% as of its last hour of trading, while the CSI 300 rose 0.45% to 4,658.33. Oil prices rose Wednesday as attacks on Middle East energy infrastructure escalate. Brent prices, the international benchmark, rose 4.12% to $107.68 per barrel. U.S. oil prices traded 1.13% higher to $97.30 per barrel by 8:52 a.m. ET. Gold ‌prices fell to a one-month low on Wednesday as investors weighed the risk of a more hawkish U.S. Federal Reserve policy stance, with high oil prices fueling concerns about ​inflation. Spot gold fell 2% to $4,903.19 per ounce as of 1216 GMT, its ​lowest level since February 18. U.S. gold futures for April delivery ⁠also dropped 2% to $4,907.40. “Investors are worried about rates staying ‘higher-for-longer’ due to ​elevated energy prices … the longer the Iran conflict goes on, the more ​likely that scenario,” said Jamie Dutta, market analyst at Nemo.money.