(Reuters) – U.S. stock index futures slipped on Wednesday as investors braced for details of U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff plans, which are expected to upend global trade and commerce.
Wall Street’s main indexes have swung between gains and losses in recent days, with investors preferring to hold safer assets such as gold and government bonds over risky equities, as they speculated about the scope of tariffs and their impact on the global economy, corporate earnings and inflation.
Details of Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariff plans were still being formulated and closely held ahead of a White House Rose Garden announcement ceremony scheduled for 4 p.m. ET (2000 GMT).
Trump has said his reciprocal tariff plans are a move to equalize generally lower U.S. tariff rates with those charged by other countries. But the format of the duties was unclear amid reports that Trump was considering a 20% universal tariff.
“Perhaps the most important question is whether this announcement will tip the scales towards a global recession,” said Oliver Blackbourn, portfolio manager at Janus Henderson Investors.
“While we believe this is unlikely at present, it is important to acknowledge that U.S. equities are relatively expensive, which could make them more vulnerable to any negative surprises.”
By 5:33 a.m. ET, S&P 500 e-minis were down 18 points, or 0.32%. Nasdaq 100 e-minis fell 79 points, or 0.4%, and Dow e-minis dropped 99 points, or 0.23%.
U.S. stocks have come under sharp selling pressure this year, with the benchmark S&P 500 and tech-heavy Nasdaq falling 10% from their record highs last month and confirming a correction.
The S&P 500 shed 4.6% in the first quarter, its biggest three-month decline since July 2022.
March U.S. private payrolls and factory orders data are scheduled for release later in the day. However, focus is on the crucial monthly non-farm payrolls data as well as Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s speech on Friday for insights on the health of the U.S. economy and trajectory of interest rates.
Traders are betting on three rate cuts from the Fed this year but the prospect of tariff-induced inflationary pressures has clouded the outlook.
Among stocks, Tesla dipped 1.1% in premarket trading ahead of its first-quarter deliveries numbers. The stock has fallen 33.5% so far this year.
(Reporting by Sruthi Shankar in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D’Silva)
Comments