Washington, April 9, 2025 – US stock futures tipped higher on Wednesday, coming off earlier premarket lows as Wall Street reacted to President Trump’s massive tariffs on key US trading partners coming into full force.
Futures tied to the S&P 500 rose 0.4%, and Dow Jones Industrial Average futures put on 0.3%, having dropped over 2% on the heels of the midnight implementation of the tariffs.
Contracts on the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 moved up 0.7%, shaking off a premarket drop of 1.5%.
Trump’s so-called “reciprocal” tariffs, the announcement of which stunned markets last week, are in full effect.
They continued to bring chaos to Wall Street, as stocks ended up on another rollercoaster ride of a session that ended in a sizable U-turn lower.
The S&P 500 crept closer to a bear market, while the Nasdaq Compositemand Dow ended the session at their lowest levels since January 2024.
China has been hit with whopping 104% duties, while Vietnam, Japan, India, and more also faced massive tariff hikes. Most US trading partners already face at least a 10% “blanket” tariff that went into effect over the weekend.
The US-China escalation took the spotlight on Tuesday. China vowed to “fight to the end” if necessary, while the White House confirmed plans to jack up tariff rates on the country to 104%, making good on a Trump threat after China retaliated.
Traders took in some other signs of optimism, however, which had sent stocks soaring earlier in Tuesday’s session. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Tuesday said he believed “we can end up with some good deals.”
Japan, facing a 24% tariff, appeared headed for the front of the line for talks. Trump also touted coming talks with South Korea after having a “great call” with its acting prime minister.
Meanwhile, first-quarter earnings season begins in earnest this week, with Delta closely watched Wednesday after slashing its outlook last month, citing economic uncertainty.
Investors are also gearing up for the release of the Consumer Price Index on Thursday, which will provide a signal of where inflation was headed before Trump’s tariffs went into full force. (AP)
