U.S. flags hang on the building of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), after U.S. President-elect Donald Trump won the presidential election, in New York City, U.S., November 6, 2024.
Andrew Kelly | Reuters
Stock futures were higher on Sunday, as investors try to glean whether equities can extend recent gains into a fresh trading week.
Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 182 points, or 0.4%. S&P 500 futures added 0.5%, while Nasdaq 100 futures were 0.6% higher.
Stocks are coming off of a much-needed winning week. The S&P 500 finished in the green on Friday and avoided four-straight weekly losses.
However, investors remain jittery over concerns about a potential slowdown of U.S. economic growth as President Donald Trump’s April 2 start date for reciprocal tariffs approaches. Trump said the tariffs are aimed at any country that imposes duties on U.S. imports.
“Equities feel ripe for a bounce,” Bank of America’s trading desk said in a Sunday note. “Positioning hurdles have been cleared, sentiment has reset, flows are turning tailwinds and growth concerns are well flagged.”
To be sure, Trump seemingly lowered the temperature for investors on Friday after he told reporters that there could potentially be “flexibility” for his reciprocal tariff plan. The president did stop short of suggesting that there could be some tariff exemptions, however, as he did similarly for automakers earlier in March.
On Sunday, the Wall Street Journal reported the tariffs are expected to be more narrow in scope and will likely exclude some industry-specific duties, citing an administration official.
The pending duties and Trump’s overall rhetoric on U.S. trade policy have raised fears among investors that the U.S. economy could be on shaky footing. Those concerns were exacerbated by weakening consumer sentiment data. However, investors received some encouraging words from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, who last week said that any potential negative impacts from Trump’s tariffs will likely be short-lived.
On the data front this week, investors will receive a consumer confidence reading on Tuesday, followed by initial weekly jobless claims figures on Thursday.