U.S. stock futures fell again on Thursday after a brief respite on Wednesday, following a softer-than-expected inflation print. Futures of all four benchmark indices declined in premarket trading.
President Donald Trump imposed the promised 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum imports on Wednesday. In response, Canada imposed 25% retaliatory tariffs on the U.S. steel imports and raised taxes on other items, whereas the European Union also retaliated with tariffs on American beef, poultry, bourbon, motorcycles, peanut butter, and jeans.
Meanwhile, the 10-year Treasury yield stood at 4.32%, while the two-year yield was at 3.98%. According to the CME Group’s FedWatch tool, there is a 97% chance that the Federal Reserve will keep interest rates unchanged for the March meeting.
Futures
Change (+/-)
Nasdaq 100
-0.38%
S&P 500
-0.30%
Dow Jones
-0.20%
Russell 2000
-0.23%
The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) and Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (NASDAQ:QQQ), which track the S&P 500 index and Nasdaq 100 index, respectively, dropped in premarket on Thursday. The SPY was down 0.21% to $557.72, and the QQQ also declined 0.31% to $475.43, according to Benzinga Pro data.
Cues From The Last Session
Fueled by strong gains in consumer discretionary, information technology, and communication services, U.S. stocks closed mixed on Wednesday.
Indices rose after inflation data revealed a larger-than-expected slowdown, with February’s Consumer Price Index dipping to 2.8%. Core inflation also dropped more than anticipated, easing from 3.3% to 3.1%.
Tech giants Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA) and Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) led the charge, while consumer staples and healthcare sectors lagged.
As of Wednesday’s close, the S&P 500 had fallen 8.92% and the Dow Jones 8.26% from their 52-week highs. The Nasdaq 100 and Nasdaq Composite were still in the correction territory, dropping 11.82% and 12.65%, respectively, from their recent peaks.
Index
Performance (+/-)
Value
Nasdaq Composite
1.22%
17,648.45
S&P 500
0.49%
5,599.30
Dow Jones
-0.20%
41,350.93
Russell 2000
0.14%
2,026.47
Insights …