U.S. Stock Futures Fall as Investors Brace for Corporate Earnings and Trade Deal News with Trump
U.S. stock futures slipped early Monday as investors monitored a flurry of trade-related developments from President Donald Trump and turned their attention to a busy week of corporate earnings and central bank decisions.
By 06:18 ET (10:18 GMT), Dow Jones futures were down 247 points (0.6%), S&P 500 futures dropped 43 points (0.8%), and Nasdaq 100 futures fell 185 points (0.9%).
The losses follow Friday’s gains, which were fueled by stronger-than-expected April job growth, though the unemployment rate held steady at 4.2%. These figures came on the heels of data showing that the U.S. economy contracted in Q1, primarily due to a surge in imports linked to tariff activity.
Trade tensions remained front and center after China said it was considering talks in response to Trump’s aggressive 145% tariff proposals, which Beijing countered with 125% tariffs on U.S. goods. Meanwhile, Trump’s announcement of a new 100% tariff on foreign-produced films weighed on shares of Netflix (NFLX), Disney (DIS), and Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) in premarket trading.
Investors are also awaiting key economic indicators, including a U.S. services sector activity report, alongside monetary policy decisions from the Federal Reserve, Bank of England, and other central banks later this week.
Earnings season continues, with reports due from major companies including Ford Motor (F), Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), Walt Disney, ConocoPhillips (COP), and Coinbase (COIN).
Elsewhere, Berkshire Hathaway (BRKa) Class B shares edged lower after the firm reported a 14% year-over-year decline in Q1 operating earnings to $9.64 billion, largely due to wildfire-related insurance losses in California.
Oil stocks also traded lower as OPEC+ announced over the weekend it would increase production by 411,000 barrels per day starting in June. The move pressured crude prices, with Brent futures down 1.2% at $60.53 a barrel and WTI crude dropping 1.4% to $57.52 by 06:17 ET.