U.S. stock futures are signaling a modest rise at Wednesday’s market open, suggesting investors may push equities higher after a mostly flat and volatile session on Tuesday.
The cautious optimism on Wall Street appears linked to progress in trade talks between the United States and the European Union.
According to the Financial Times, EU negotiators are nearing an agreement with the U.S. that would establish tariffs higher than those currently applied to the U.K.
However, early trading could remain tentative due to renewed trade tensions, as President Donald Trump announced a hefty 50% tariff on copper imports and warned of even steeper tariffs on other sectors, including a possible 200% duty on pharmaceuticals.
In a post on Truth Social Tuesday night, Trump stated he will “be releasing a minimum of 7 Countries having to do with trade” this morning, with “an additional number of Countries being released in the afternoon.”
Attention also turns to the Federal Reserve, which will publish minutes from its latest policy meeting later today.
These minutes may provide further insights into the Fed’s interest rate outlook before its next gathering on July 29-30.
Currently, CME Group’s FedWatch Tool shows a 93.3% probability that the Fed will keep rates steady later this month.
After a sharp retreat on Monday, markets remained indecisive on Tuesday, oscillating around the unchanged line before closing mixed.
The Nasdaq inched up slightly by 5.95 points, less than 0.1%, to 20,418.46; meanwhile, the S&P 500 slipped 4.46 points (0.1%) to 6,225.52, and the Dow dropped 165.60 points (0.4%) to 44,240.76.
Investors held back from making bold moves amid ongoing uncertainty over Trump’s trade stance.
On Monday, Trump extended the suspension of reciprocal tariffs on U.S. trading partners through an executive order.
The order extends the 90-day tariff suspension, initially set to expire Wednesday, until August 1, citing “additional information and recommendations from various senior officials.”
Trump told reporters the new deadline is “not 100 percent firm,” but on Truth Social this morning he declared “No extensions will be granted,” adding to market uncertainty.
The deadline extension follows a series of letters Trump posted on Truth Social threatening higher tariffs on at least 14 countries.
With little major U.S. economic data expected before the Fed minutes release, some traders remained on the sidelines.
Despite the muted market tone, energy stocks showed notable strength, with the Philadelphia Oil Service Index surging 5.3% and the NYSE Arca Oil Index climbing 3.4%.
Semiconductor stocks also performed well, as the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index gained 1.8%.
Biotech and steel sectors demonstrated solid gains, while gold stocks dropped sharply, tracking the fall in precious metal prices.
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