Crude oil posted a modest gain as traders remained wary over the prospects for a Middle East deal, tempering the mood ahead of crucial US inflation data. Sentiment toward technology stocks remained buoyant, with CoreWeave Inc. shares surging after the company bolstered its outlook.

Brent edged 0.3% higher to $89.10 a barrel, rising for a sixth session. The advance came despite Pakistan’s defense minister saying the US and Iran are “close to some sort of arrangement” over the Strait of Hormuz, while both sides appeared to harden their positions in the long-deadlocked negotiations.

Technology remained in focus with CoreWeave shares surging 14% in extended trading after the artificial intelligence spending frenzy spurred faster sales growth than anticipated. Super Micro Computer Inc. rallied over 7% in post market after giving a revenue forecast that topped estimates.

Read more: Equity MF bets lose some zip, seasonal debt flow lifts AUM

In stocks, MSCI’s Asia Pacific equities gauge advanced 0.4%, with South Korea’s Kospi Index rising 1.5%. Stocks in Japan, which returned from a holiday, were mixed. The robust earnings from tech companies helped US equity-index futures edge up 0.1%.

The guarded tone, ahead of Wednesday’s key US consumer price index reading, highlights how investors are weighing persistent geopolitical risks against uncertainty over the Federal Reserve’s next move on interest rates. Hopes for a breakthrough in negotiations took a hit after optimism about an imminent deal lifted risk assets last week.

“We see crude oil prices driving the war narrative, with price swings likely to dictate the pace of escalation and de-escalation,” said Elias Haddad at Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.

Attention is firmly on Wednesday’s US CPI print, which is expected to show that energy-related pressures have eased after intensifying in the months immediately following the start of the war.

The headline gauge probably rose 0.1% in July following a 0.4% decline in the prior month, based on the median projection in a Bloomberg survey of economists ahead of Wednesday’s Bureau of Labor Statistics release.

A softer reading may help alleviate some concern at the Fed after three officials dissented in July in favor of raising interest rates.

“I expect the CPI report to continue its downward trend which will further support the case for the Federal Reserve to hold rates steady rather than hiking them, even with last Friday’s weak jobs report,” said Dennis Follmer at Montis Financial.

Other US data Tuesday offered a mixed picture of the economy. Sales of existing homes fell to a three-month low in July as elevated prices and mortgage rates continued to weigh on the housing market. Small-business optimism, meanwhile, climbed to the highest in almost a year as firms stepped up hiring plans and inflation pressures eased.

In Asia, investors will also be watching the yen as it approaches a key level against the dollar that may revive speculation that Japanese authorities will intervene to support the currency.

Elsewhere, gold retreated from a two-month high as traders weighed prospects for a US-Iran agreement while elevated oil prices continued to signal uncertainty over the conflict’s trajectory.