Futures for the Dow Jones Industrials retreated 393 points, or 1.3%, early Wednesday to 30,132.
Futures for the S&P 500 backpedaled 54.75 points, or 1.5%, to 3,713.
Futures for the NASDAQ Composite index faltered 182.75 points, or 1.6%, to 11,394.50.
On the earnings front, KB Home will post results after the market closes on Wednesday.
Growing fears that the economy will tip into a recession have recently weighed on stocks. The Federal Reserve last week hiked interest rates by three-quarters of a percentage point, the central bank’s largest rate increase since 1994.
The move came as the Fed tries to cool inflation, which has surged to a 40-year high.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell will appear before Congress on Wednesday, kicking off two days of testimony.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 dipped 0.4% Wednesday. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng tumbled 2.6%
Oil prices flopped $5.20 to $104.32 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices nicked up 60 cents to $1,839.40 U.S. an ounce.