US stock futures edged higher on Friday as Wall Street readied for the crucial monthly jobs report amid market uncertainty driven by President Donald Trump’s volatile trade policy.
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures (YM=F) rose about 0.1%, while S&P 500 futures (ES=F) put on about 0.2%. Contracts on the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 (NQ=F) added 0.3% after closing in correction territory on Thursday.
Stakes are high for February’s job report later on Friday, as stocks flounder amid fears of weakening economic growth. Downbeat economic data has boosted bets on interest rate cuts this year, setting investors on watch for signs of strain in the nonfarm-payrolls report. It’s expected to show hiring picked up, while the employment rate held steady when it’s released at 8:30 a.m. ET.
Markets are also looking to Chair Jerome Powell to throw some light on the Federal Reserve’s thinking on Trump’s tariffs and the risk of stagflation when he speaks on Friday morning. His comments will be among the last from Fed officials before their March 18-19 policy meeting.
Trade-war worries are still keeping markets on edge. Trump paused tariffs on most goods from Mexico and Canada until April, but the news didn’t provide any relief for stocks on Thursday. Canada responded with a matching delay in its second wave of retaliatory duties, while Mexico has yet to react. However, Mexico has begun reviewing its China tariffs, which could prove a win with Trump.
Read more: Trump pauses tariffs on most imports from Mexico, Canada
Meanwhile, bitcoin (BTC-USD) fell below $90,000, pulling back from this week’s rally after Trump authorized the creation of a strategic US bitcoin reserve ahead of his “crypto summit” on Friday.
On the earnings front, Broadcom’s stock (AVGO) jumped in premarket after the US chipmaker issued a strong second quarter forecast, seen as a positive sign for AI demand.
Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA) shares jumped almost 7% before the bell on news the drugstore giant is preparing to exit the public markets.
The company has sealed its go-private deal with Sycamore, worth up to $23.7 billion, following months of negotiations with the PE firm.
Yahoo Finance’s Anjalee Khemlani reports:
Walgreens entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by an entity affiliated with Sycamore, the company said in a statement late Thursday.
Shareholders will receive a total of $11.45 per share in cash, or $10 billion, at the closing of the Sycamore transaction. The additional value in the deal comes from an extra $3 in future monetization of the company’s debt and equity interest in VillageMD.
“Throughout our history, Walgreens Boots Alliance has played a critical role in the retail healthcare ecosystem,” CEO Tim Wentworth said in the statement. “We are focused on making healthcare delivery more effective, convenient and affordable as we navigate the challenges of a rapidly evolving pharmacy industry and an increasingly complex and competitive retail landscape.”
Read more here.
In recent weeks, retailers Walmart (WMT), Target (TGT), Best Buy (BBY), and, most recently, Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) have spooked investors after they warned about profit pressures and price hikes resulting from tariffs.
Yahoo Finance’s Hamza Shaban writes in the Morning Brief:
After years of the “resilient consumer,” a cooling economy redefined by tariffs will test the wherewithal of American retailers.
In a suite of earnings this week, executives offered an early glimpse of commercial life in a new, high-tariff era. While exposure to the levies differs by sector and brand, a key theme emerged from this season’s commentary: As tariff news changes by the minute, retailers are having an all-hands-on-deck moment to deal with whatever comes. A whatever that feels like it could be anything.
The backdrop for all of this is the idea of the resilient consumer. Americans dutifully swiped their cards for years, powering the economy through the COVID slump and through — and contributing to — historic levels of inflation. Until a Fed campaign of high rates finally pushed pent-up demand into more “choiceful” spending, as one Goldman analyst creatively put it.
Managers are having to decide whether to eat the price increases, thereby hitting corporate profits, or roll the dice and pass the tariff costs on to consumers, further testing their resiliency. But Americans, worn down by higher costs, are primed to reject another cycle of post-COVID price shocks.
Read more here or sign up to receive the Morning Brief newsletter straight to your inbox.
Shares of Broadcom (AVGO) rose over 11% in premarket trading, set for a rebound as investors welcomed the US chipmaker’s strong second quarter sales forecast.
The Apple supplier’s outlook helped revive some faith in Big Tech demand for AI chips after rival Marvell’s (MRVL) downbeat earnings helped drive losses among semiconductor stocks on Thursday.
“Given the anxiety about AI conditions in general, these results should come as a relief,” Morgan Stanley analysts said, per Reuters.
Yahoo Finance’s Josh Schafer reports:
The February jobs report is expected to show hiring picked up in February, while the unemployment rate held steady. This comes at a crucial moment for markets as stocks have recently been floundering amid fears about economic growth weakening in the US.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ monthly jobs report is slated for release at 8:30 a.m. ET on Friday. Economists expect nonfarm payrolls to have risen by 160,000 in February, while the unemployment rate held steady at 4%, according to consensus estimates compiled by Bloomberg.
With markets in a slump — amid a string of weaker-than-expected economic growth data — Citi head of US equity trading strategy Stuart Kaiser told Yahoo Finance that Friday’s jobs report is a “pretty significant risk to the market.”
“A good jobs print helps, but it’s probably not enough to sort things out,” Kaiser said. “And if you got a weak print, let’s say below 125,000 jobs [added], or in particular, if the unemployment rate rose, I think you would have a pretty big pullback in US equities in response to that.”
Read more here.
White House crypto czar David Sacks said in a post on X that U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday to establish a strategic bitcoin reserve.
The reserve will be initially funded with bitcoin owned by the federal government that was forfeited as part of criminal or civil asset forfeiture proceedings. The US government is estimated to own around 200,000 bitcoin, with a full audit of its holdings mandated.
David Sacks tweet:
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In This Article:
Walgreens stock pops as retailer nails its exit from market
It’s retailers’ turn to be ‘resilient’: Morning Brief
Broadcom stock jumps as outlook eases AI worries
Jobs report expected to show hiring uptick, unemployment steady
Trump establishes strategic bitcoin reserve signed order
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US stocks rally on Trump’s tariff exemption for autos
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US stocks rose Wednesday following two days of steep declines. The rally came after the Trump administration announced a one-month reprieve on auto tariffs for Canada and Mexico, easing investor concerns about a global trade war.
US stocks, which had teetered during the day, surged higher after the White House confirmed the one-month exemption. The Dow jumped 615 points before pulling back slightly to close higher by 486 points, or 1.14%, at 43,007. The broader S&P 500 rose 1.12% and the Nasdaq Composite gained 1.46%.
“We spoke with the Big Three auto dealers. We are going to give a one-month exemption on any autos coming through USMCA,” President Donald Trump said in a statement read by White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt at a press briefing Wednesday. Those dealers included Stellantis, Ford and General Motors.
Shares in General Motors (GM) rose 7.21%. Shares in Stellantis (STLA) rose 9.24% and shares in Ford (F) gained 5.81%.
The announcement of a one-month reprieve for tariffs on automakers is welcome news for investors who are looking for signs that the Trump administration might further negotiate or roll back its tariff policies.
RELATED ARTICLE
Tariffs on cars from Mexico and Canada delayed by one month
The afternoon rally is a rebound in the stock market after it took a beating to start the week. The Dow tumbled a whopping 1,300 points across Monday and Tuesday, largely driven by Trump’s enactment of tariffs — and the subsequent retaliation from trading partners. The broader S&P 500 on Tuesday erased its gains since Trump’s reelection in November.
In his address to Congress on Tuesday, Trump did not mention the stock market — a barometer of the economy that he usually touts as evidence of his success as president. Yet Trump said tariffs might cause a “little disturbance” in the economy.
Experts point to increased uncertainty for investors.
“With Canada, Mexico and China now retaliating, trade tensions have escalated, increasing inflation risks and market volatility,” said Solita Marcelli, chief investment officer for the Americas at UBS Global Wealth Management, in a note Wednesday.
The rebound in markets on Wednesday recoups some of the week’s earlier losses, but the S&P 500 is still off of its previous record high, reached just two weeks ago.
Crude oil prices tumbled on Wednesday due to concerns about a brewing trade war and OPEC+ oversupplying the market. Futures on WTI crude, the US benchmark, fell 2.7% to $66.40, the lowest price since September 2024.
At one point during the day, crude dropped to $65.22, the lowest intraday price since March 2023.
Kevin Gordon, a senior investment strategist at Charles Schwab, said the back and forth with tariffs has created a fog of uncertainty for investors, businesses and consumers.
“Uncertainty is the policy at this point,” Gordon said.
CNN’s Elisabeth Buchwald and Matt Egan contributed reporting.
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