U.S. stock futures rose Wednesday, after dovish comments from a top Federal Reserve official raised expectations that the U.S. central bank has ended its rate-hiking cycle.

By 06:15 ET (11:15 GMT), the Dow Futures contract was up 60 points, or 0.2%, S&P 500 Futures traded 14 points, or 0.3%, higher and Nasdaq 100 Futures climbed 65 points, or 0.4%.

The main Wall Street indices posted small gains on Tuesday, resuming a rally that sees the Dow Jones Industrial Average on course to end the penultimate month of the year over 7% higher, the benchmark S&P 500 up 8.6% and tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite over 11%.

Waller hints at future rate cuts
Sentiment has received a boost following comments from Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller, who suggested on Tuesday that the U.S. central bank’s monetary policy is “well-positioned” to cool inflation.

Waller, normally known as a hawkish voice at the Fed, added that should inflation continue to ease back down to the Fed’s 2% target for “several more months,” there is a chance that officials “could start lowering” interest rates.

Headline inflation in the U.S. slowed by more than anticipated to 3.2% in October, and Thursday sees the release of the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge, the personal consumption expenditures price index.

This is expected to have risen just 0.1% on the month in November, a drop from 0.4% in September, while the core reading, which strips out food and fuel costs and is considered a better gauge of underlying inflation, is expected to have risen 3.5% on a year-over-year basis, a drop from 3.7% the prior month, and the lowest since mid-2021.

Additional data due for release Wednesday include preliminary gross domestic product data for the third quarter as well as the wholesale inventories report for October.

Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRKa) in spotlight after Munger’s death
On the earnings front, Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) and Dollar Tree (NASDAQ:DLTR) are expected to issue quarterly results before the opening bell, while Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) is due to report after the close.

Additionally, Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRKb) will be in the spotlight after the announcement of the death of Charlie Munger, vice chairman of the vast conglomerate, just short of his 100th birthday.

Munger was known as the right-hand man of Berkshire’s head Warren Buffett, helping to turn Berkshire from a rundown textile manufacturer into an investment empire worth almost $800 billion.

Oil gains in supply disruptions
Oil prices surged Wednesday, boosted by more supply disruptions ahead of a crucial OPEC+ meeting to discuss future production levels.

By 06:15 ET, the U.S. crude futures traded 1.3% higher at $77.41 a barrel, while the Brent contract traded 1.1% higher at $82.39 a barrel.

A severe storm in the Black Sea region has disrupted up to 2 million barrels per day of oil exports from Kazakhstan and Russia, fuelling concerns of short-term supply tightness.

These worries, however, could be alleviated if the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies, a group known as OPEC+, decides to announce deeper production cuts at its meeting on Thursday.

Oil also found support from a drop in U.S. crude inventories, with industry body American Petroleum Institute estimating a fall of 817,000 barrels last week. Official data is scheduled for release later in the session.

Additionally, gold futures edged higher to $2,040.25/oz, while EUR/USD traded 0.1% lower at 1.0976.