Futures Little Changed Amid Trade Concerns
Stock futures wavered Friday morning as investors continue to navigate a volatile global trade landscape with President Donald Trump’s contentious plan for tariffs in legal limbo.
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrials ditched 172 points, or 0.4%, to 42,095
Futures for the S&P 500 index fell 29.75 points, or 0.5%, to 5,893.
Futures for the NASDAQ reversed 108.5 points, or 0.5%, to 21,300.
The Trump administration is now considering using a provision of the Trade Act of 1974 to implement tariffs of up to 15% for 150 days, according to The Wall Street Journal. This report comes as the administration searches for an avenue to implement the plan for broad and steep tariffs after a court threw its legality into question.
The Court of International Trade on Wednesday night halted the majority of President Donald Trump’s tariffs. But an appeals court granted a stay on Thursday afternoon, allowing the duties to remain in place until next week.
Meanwhile, Treasury Secretary Bessent said in a Fox News interview that U.S.-China trade talks “are a bit stalled,” dashing hopes of investors wanting a deal soon.
This news is the latest dose of uncertainty for what was an already uneasy market. Investors have contended with macroeconomic concerns tied to tariffs and worry that the shakeup to U.S. trade policy could cause a recession.
Yet stocks are on the verge of closing out May with strong gains following a rocky April. The S&P 500 has added more than 6% this month, while the NASDAQ Composite has surged 10% in that time. The 30-stock Dow has gained about 4% on the month.
For the week, the S&P 500 has advanced about 2%, while the 30-stock Dow is up 1.4%. The tech-heavy NASDAQ has advanced 2.3%.
Investors parsed fresh quarterly results in premarket trading. Shares of clothing retailer Gap pulled back more than 17% after a weaker-than-expected second-quarter outlook, while cosmetics stock Ulta Beauty advanced 7% on strong first-quarter results. Dell Technologies gained about 1.7% on the heels of strong first-quarter revenue.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 index dumped 1.2% Friday, while in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng fell 1.2%.
Oil prices dipped 50 cents to $60.44 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices lost $16.10 to $3,301 U.S. an ounce.
