By Peter Nurse

Investing.com -- U.S. stocks are seen opening firmly higher Tuesday, continuing the previous session’s broad rally as investors enter the year’s final quarter with a degree of cautious optimism.

At 07:00 ET (11:00 GMT), the Dow Futures contract was up 410 points, or 1.4%, S&P 500 Futures traded 62 points, or 1.7%, higher and Nasdaq 100 Futures climbed 230 points, or 2.1%.

The main equity indices closed sharply higher Monday, with the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average gaining over 700 points, or 2.7%, its best day since June 24. The broad-based S&P 500 rose 2.6%, its strongest day since July 27, and the Nasdaq Composite gained 2.3%.

Stocks have been helped by the fall in U.S. Treasury yields after the publication of weaker-than-expected manufacturing data, raising hopes that the Federal Reserve will ease back on its monetary tightening as economic growth slows.

There are more Fed policymakers due to speak Tuesday, and investors will also study new data from the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey for clues about the health of the labor market ahead of Friday’s keenly-anticipated official jobs report.

Third quarter earnings are about to start rolling in as October progresses, but fourth quarter forecasts will be far more important to the market’s future direction, according to S&P Global.

“October brings earnings, with Q3 estimates already declining 7%, and the whisper numbers a bit more than that,” S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) said, in a note. “The larger concern (than the actual numbers for Q3, when consumers were still spending) is the guidance for Q4, as consumers have pulled back, inflation continues and the Fed’s 'adjustments' will have a more substantial impact.”

Rivian Automotive (NASDAQ:RIVN) stock jumped over 7% premarket after the electric vehicle maker said it produced 7,363 vehicles in the third quarter, 67% higher than the preceding quarter, and maintained its full-year target of 25,000 units.

Oil prices edged higher Tuesday, extending the previous session’s positive tone as the market looks forward to Wednesday’s OPEC+ meeting amid expectations of a substantial cut in crude production.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies, together called OPEC+, are scheduled to meet tomorrow, and speculation is rife the cartel will agree to an output cut of more than one million barrels a day.

The American Petroleum Institute unveils its weekly estimate of U.S. crude stocks later in the session.

By 07:00 ET (11:00 GMT), U.S. crude futures traded 0.8% higher at $84.27 a barrel, while the Brent contract rose 1% to $89.70. Both benchmarks gained more than 4% on Tuesday, the largest daily gain since May.