A trader works, as a screen broadcasts a news conference by U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell following the Fed rate announcement, on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., May 7, 2025.
Brendan McDermid | Reuters
Stock futures were higher Thursday after President Donald Trump announced a trade deal between the U.S. and United Kingdom had been struck.
Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 352 points, or 0.9%. S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 futures climbed 1.1% and 1.4%, respectively.
“The agreement with the United Kingdom is a full and comprehensive one that will cement the relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom for many years to come,” Trump said in a Truth Social post after teasing the announcement in previous posts.
Shares of megacap tech companies led the way higher in the premarket. Apple and Nvidia gained more than 1% each, while Meta Platforms advanced 2%. Tesla and Amazon also advanced more than 1% each.
Investors have been looking for signs of progress on global trade after Trump last month unveiled steep tariffs on imported goods. The levies initially sent equities sharply lower, but they later recovered.
Thursday’s moves come after a winning session on Wall Street as investors digested the latest Federal Reserve policy announcement.
The Fed kept its benchmark overnight borrowing unchanged. However, the central bank noted in its statement that “Uncertainty about the economic outlook has increased further.” It added that the “Committee is attentive to the risks to both sides of its dual mandate and judges that the risks of higher unemployment and higher inflation have risen.”
“The Federal Reserve is in a bind – with concerns about inflation and an economic slump, which will lead to higher unemployment, pulling them in two opposite directions,” said Chris Zaccarelli, Northlight Asset Management’s chief investment officer. “The markets are going to increasingly worry about a recession, and unless some trade deals are made before the tariff pause runs out, we are going to see markets drop again like they did in early April.”
Investors are now looking ahead to other economic reports due to be released on Thursday. Weekly jobless claims data is set to be released before the opening bell at 8:30 a.m. ET, while the New York Fed Survey of Consumer Expectations is slated for later in the day.
