Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange.
Brendan McDermid | Reuters
U.S. stock futures jumped early Monday after the U.S. and China agreed to temporarily slash tariffs following negotiations over the weekend in Switzerland.
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures gained 1,117 points, or 2.6%. S&P 500 futures climbed 3.1%, and Nasdaq-100 futures surged 4%.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Monday that talks with China had been “very productive” and both countries had agreed to cut “reciprocal” tariffs by 115% for 90 days. That brings U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods down to 30%, and Chinese tariffs on U.S. imports to 10%. Bessent told CNBC’s “Squawk Box” on Monday that he expects to meet once again with representatives from Beijing in the “next few weeks” to iron out a bigger agreement.
Best Buy, which sells electronics and appliances vulnerable to tariffs, popped 8% in the premarket to lead S&P 500 gains. Dell Technologies and On Semiconductor also climbed more than 8%, while Amazon and Apple advanced more than 8% and 7%.
Tensions between China and the U.S. soared after President Donald Trump last month unveiled 145% tariffs on imported goods from China. Beijing then retaliated with 125% duties of its own targeting U.S. goods.
“We believe peak uncertainty over trade has passed, but market volatility is likely to stay,” UBS head of fixed income Kurt Reiman wrote in a Monday note. “Our base case remains that the effective US tariff rate (ex-China) will moderate toward 15% by year-end.”
The S&P 500 nearly closed in bear market territory — down more than 20% from a record set in February — following the “liberation day” announcement. Stocks quickly rebounded after Trump cut tariffs on the rest of the world, but gains were held in check as investors awaited progress on U.S.-China trade negotiations.
Should the morning’s futures gains hold through the close, the S&P 500 would be near positive territory for the year.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said Sunday that the 10% baseline tariff rate on imports from other countries is likely to “be in place for the foreseeable future,” echoing Trump’s comments from days prior.
All three major averages are coming off their first losing week in three. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite shed 0.5% and 0.3%, respectively. The Dow slipped 0.2% last week.
Investors this week will look for signs on how the trade tensions are impacting the economy. The consumer price index reading for April is due Tuesday morning, while retail sales and the producer price index — another inflation measure — are set for release on Thursday.
