(Reuters) – U.S. stock index futures inched up on Monday, ahead of a crucial deadline on tariffs on top trade partners and a data-packed week that could throw light on the health of the world’s largest economy.
At 05:50 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis were up 101 points, or 0.23%, U.S. S&P 500 E-minis were up 19 points, or 0.31% and Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 89 points, or 0.43%.
Recent reports on softening consumer demand have spurred fears of a slowdown as markets prepare for higher inflation once Donald Trump administration’s tariff policies take full effect.
Wall Street’s three main indexes logged their first monthly decline of 2025 in February, with the Nasdaq coming close to a 10% drop from its all-time high.
Expectations of sticky inflation had led to the Federal Reserve leaving interest rates on hold since December, but this week’s economic data, particularly Friday’s non-farm payrolls report, could change their outlook.
Investor focus will be on the Institute for Supply Management’s (ISM) survey, due at 10 a.m. ET. Economists polled by Reuters estimate manufacturing activity to stay in expansion territory of 50.8. Services activity data along with at least three employment reports are also lined up through the week.
Traders have dialed up bets on the Fed’s 2025 monetary policy easing cycle, with futures pointing to at least two 25 basis points worth of interest rate cuts by December, according to data compiled by LSEG.
St. Louis Fed President Alberto Musalem, a Federal Open Market Committee voting member, is scheduled to speak later in the day, while Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s remarks are due on Friday.
Investors are uncertain about tariffs, ahead of Trump’s Tuesday deadline, that will end the one-month pause on the 25% duties he imposed on imports from Canada and Mexico.
There are suggestions that the President could soften the blow on the North American economies if they agree to also impose duties on Chinese goods.
Trump has also threatened that an extra 10% duty on imports from China will also take effect on Tuesday, against which a report said Beijing is likely to retaliate with counter-measures on agricultural imports from the U.S.
U.S-listed shares of Chinese companies such as Nio fell 3.6%, JD.com lost 2.3% in premarket trading.
Still, analysts say that April 1 is the day when the new administration’s trade policy would be fully revealed.
Crypto stocks such as Microstrategy jumped 12.3%, Coinbase rose 9.4% tracking bitcoin that surged 9.8% after Trump announced a proposed reserve of digital assets, ahead of Friday’s White House Crypto Summit.
Defense stocks such as RTX added 2.1%, Lockheed Martin climbed 1.1% after the U.S. approved a $3 billion arms deal to Israel.
(Reporting by Johann M Cherian in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli)
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