Traders work on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) floor on March 03, 2025 in New York City.
Spencer Platt | Getty Images
Stock futures were higher on Thursday evening as traders sought to look past U.S. trade policy worries that have rattled the market this week. They also looked ahead to a big payrolls report due Friday morning.
Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 49 points, or 0.1%. S&P 500 futures gained 0.4%, while Nasdaq 100 futures advanced nearly 0.7%.
The action follows a rocky session on Thursday, with the major averages going back into sell-off mode as the latest concessions on President Donald Trump’s tariff policies failed to calm investors. The blue-chip Dow lost more than 400 points, and the Nasdaq Composite fell into correction territory, ending the session more than 10% off its high.
Stocks have been on a roller-coaster ride as Trump’s tariff policies have worried investors over future U.S. growth. While Trump said on Thursday that a swath of goods from Canada and Mexico that are covered by the North American trade agreement known as USMCA would be exempt from the announced duties until April 2, that wasn’t enough to spur a recovery rally similar to the one seen on Wednesday.
“Markets are all over the place trying to price tariff impacts, which is really hard to do when the goal post moves, disappears, and morphs by the second,” said Jamie Cox, managing partner at Harris Financial Group.
This latest market rout put the three major averages on course for their worst week since September 2024. The S&P 500 is off 3.6% week to date, while the 30-stock Dow is down 2.9%. The Nasdaq is the underperformer of the period, down 4.1% so far this week.
February’s nonfarm payrolls report will be the next big catalyst on investors’ radar, giving markets further insight into the health of the economy. Economists polled by Dow Jones forecast growth of 170,000 jobs, and expect the unemployment rate held steady at 4%.
