US stock futures pointed to sharp losses for the major indexes, as Wall Street showed the effects of President Donald Trump’s announcement of tariffs on China, Mexico, and Canada.
Nasdaq futures (NQ=F) have dived 2.2%, leading the way down. S&P 500 futures (ES=F) spiraled 1.6%, and futures attached to the Dow (YM=F) stumbled 1.1%, or around 500 points.
The tariffs, set to take effect on Tuesday, will include 25% duties on Canada and Mexico and 10% on China. Energy imports from Canada will be lower with a 10% duty.
On Sunday evening, the US dollar index (DX=F) rose to near its highest levels over the past year. Crude oil (CL=F) also jumped around 2%.
With Trump’s tariffs arriving as expected over the past week, focus has been honed in on retaliatory announcements. As Yahoo Finance’s Ben Werschkul reported, Canada, Mexico, and China were quick to announce measures across a range of goods. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Canada will place 25% counter-tariffs on around $107 billion in American-made products.
The trade war is causing “considerable uncertainty about President Trump’s trade agenda for 2025.” That uncertainty is a large part of the Fed’s desire to keep a hold on rates for fears of a rise in inflation.
The tariffs are due to impact consumers directly across a number of industries. Automobiles and auto parts, gas and oil, clothes, computers, whiskey, and avocados are a small selection of items whose prices are expected to rise.
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Stock market coverage for Monday, February 3, 2025.