US STOCKS-Futures lower on Iran tensions, trade worries

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* Futures down: Dow 0.11%, S&P 0.15%, Nasdaq 0.24%

By Medha Singh
June 25 (Reuters) - U.S. stock futures were pulled lower by
Iran tensions and trade worries on Tuesday, with investors
focusing on Federal Reserve officials for more clarity on
interest rates.
In a dramatic and unprecedented move, President Donald Trump
on Monday imposed new sanctions on Iran's supreme leader and
foreign minister, a decision Tehran said closed the path to
diplomacy between the countries. Adding to investor nerves, a senior U.S. official said Trump
is "comfortable with any outcome" from the talks with his
Chinese counterpart at the G20 summit later this week.
"Amidst the recent displays of chest-thumping by both
governments, all in the name of safeguarding national interests,
markets are defaulting to a flight-to-safety mode, as they wait
to find out what will actually transpire this weekend," FXTM
market analyst Han Tan said.
Investors will also closely monitor speeches by no less than
five Fed policymakers later in the day, including Chair Jerome
Powell.
The three main Wall Street indexes are up at least 7% this
month, with the S&P 500 .SPX hitting a record high last week,
spurred by hopes that the Fed would lower key lending rates to
counter any economic slowdown caused by the tariff war between
Washington and Beijing.
Traders fully expect a rate cut from the U.S. central bank
in July and see a 40% possibility of a half-point move, CME
Group's FedWatch program showed.
At 6:58 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis 1YMcv1 were down 29 points,
or 0.11%. S&P 500 e-minis EScv1 were down 4.5 points, or 0.15%
and Nasdaq 100 e-minis NQcv1 were down 19 points, or 0.24%.
Among stocks, AbbVie Inc ABBV.N said it would acquire
Botox-maker Allergan Plc AGN.N in a cash-and-stock deal for
about $63 billion, sending its shares 10.1% lower. Shares of
Allergan surged 28.5%.
Lennar Corp LEN.N rose 4.1% after the No. 2 U.S.
homebuilder reported a 35.8% rise in quarterly profit, selling
more as mortgage rates fell.
FedEx Corp FDX.N edged 0.6% lower as the U.S. parcel
delivery firm sued the U.S. government, saying it should not be
held liable if it inadvertently shipped products that violated a
Trump administration ban on exports to some Chinese companies.
On the economic front, the Commerce Department is expected
to announce that new home sales rose to 680,000 units in May
from 673,000 a month earlier.
Separately, the Conference Board is expected to report
consumer confidence fell to a reading of 131.2 in June from
134.1 in May. Both sets of data are due at 10:00 a.m. ET.