U.S. stock futures dropped Friday night as investors weighed newly announced tariffs from former President Donald Trump and underwhelming earnings from Amazon, all ahead of July’s crucial jobs report.
As of 05:55 ET, Dow Jones futures were down 375 points (0.9%), S&P 500 futures slipped 55 points (0.9%), and Nasdaq 100 futures declined 218 points (0.9%).
The previous session saw Wall Street’s major indexes retreat from earlier gains, with escalating trade tensions overshadowing strong results from tech leaders Meta Platforms and Microsoft.
Trump Unleashes New Round of Tariffs
Trump signed an executive order Thursday raising tariffs—up to 50% in some cases—on dozens of countries. The move comes as a “reciprocal tariff” deadline passed after weeks of negotiations.
Key U.S. trade partners such as the EU, Japan, and South Korea will face new duties of 15%, while countries running a trade surplus with the U.S. will see 10% tariffs. Brazil will be hit with 50% levies, and Canada’s tariffs rise to 35% for non-compliant goods under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement.
The new tariffs are set to take effect at 12:01 a.m. on August 7. Meanwhile, Mexico was granted a 90-day extension to reach a trade deal.
Amazon Falls on Cloud Concerns
Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) shares declined in premarket trading after issuing weaker-than-expected operating income guidance for the current quarter. While Amazon Web Services posted $30.9 billion in sales—up 17.5% year-over-year and slightly above expectations—investors were disappointed amid fears AWS is losing market share.
In contrast, Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) rallied after beating Q3 expectations, helped by strong iPhone sales in China and record-high services revenue.
More corporate earnings are on deck Friday from Chevron, Exxon Mobil, Colgate-Palmolive, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, and Kimberly-Clark.
All Eyes on July Payrolls
Investors are now awaiting the U.S. Labor Department’s July jobs report, due Friday morning. Economists expect 106,000 new jobs, down from 147,000 in June, with unemployment ticking up to 4.2% from 4.1%.
Earlier this week, the Federal Reserve held interest rates steady for the fifth consecutive meeting, resisting political pressure from Trump to cut rates. While the labor market has held firm, inflation remains above the Fed’s 2% target, and early signs suggest new tariffs may already be pushing up prices on certain trade-exposed goods.
Oil Slips as Tariffs Cloud Outlook
Crude prices edged lower Friday as traders assessed the potential economic drag from the new tariffs.
At 05:55 ET, Brent crude dipped 0.3% to $71.47 per barrel, while U.S. WTI fell 0.4% to $69.01. Both benchmarks are still set to close the week up roughly 5%, supported by Trump’s earlier threat to impose sanctions on
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