US stock futures gain as Trump delays EU tariffs

Contracts for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 rose after Trump said he had agreed to delay the date for a 50% tariff on goods from the European Union to July 9 from June 1. The dollar fluctuated following the comments after falling to its lowest level since December 2023 on Friday. The yen and Swiss franc, major beneficiaries of the Friday move, retreated early Monday in Asia.

The moves reflected the increasing uncertainty in markets, with Trump’s broadside against Europe on Friday a harsh reminder of the president’s volatile policymaking. Trump’s tariff threats on Friday also included a 25% levy on smart phones if companies including Apple Inc. and Samsung Electronics Co. failed to move production to the US.

“Overall it’s good news on the day,” said Rodrigo Catril, a strategist at National Australia Bank in Sydney. “But the constant threats don’t make for a good environment for investment and hiring decisions.”

Futures for Asian stocks, recorded prior to Trump’s deadline extension, fell in line with Wall Street moves on Friday with contracts for Japanese, Australian and Hong Kong stocks all lower. In commodities, oil gained 0.7% while and gold fell 0.3% in early trading Monday.

To Capital Economics, Trump’s threat of a 50% tariff on the EU from June may well turn out to be a “negotiating tactic” and seems “very unlikely” to be where tariffs settle over the long run.

“At this stage, we are not inclined to change our working assumption that tariffs on the EU will ultimately settle around 10%, but this underlines that there are risks and that the road to an agreement could be rocky,” the firm said.

Treasuries ended Friday little changed after yields soared earlier in the week in a sign traders were growing anxious about the fiscal effects of Trump’s signature legislative package, which features new tax breaks. Treasuries were closed on Monday for a holiday.

Investors are also gearing up for the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation measure, the US personal consumption expenditures price index excluding food and energy, which will be released Friday. The April reading is forecast to rise 0.1% based on consensus expectations.

Elsewhere, signs of port congestion in northern Europe and other hubs suggests trade wars could lead to maritime disruptions around the world, increasing shipping rates.

Meanwhile, Japan’s chief trade negotiator Ryosei Akazawa indicated his aim to resolve tariff talks in time for a June meeting between Trump and Japan’s Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba following the president’s surprise pivot to allow a partnership between two of the countries’ steelmakers. 

Trump on Friday announced a partnership between United States Steel Corp. and Japan’s Nippon Steel Corp., shocking markets with an agreement he said would keep the once-iconic American firm in the US, but otherwise providing no specifics. Shares in US Steel rose 21.2%.

Some of the main moves in markets:

Stocks

• S&P 500 futures rose 0.8% as of 8:10 a.m. Tokyo time
• Hang Seng futures fell 0.3%
• S&P/ASX 200 futures fell 0.4%

Currencies

• The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed
• The euro rose 0.1% to $1.1376
• The Japanese yen fell 0.2% to 142.82 per dollar
• The offshore yuan was little changed at 7.1756 per dollar
• The Australian dollar rose 0.2% to $0.6504

Cryptocurrencies

• Bitcoin rose 1.3% to $109,076.08
• Ether rose 1% to $2,548.6

Bonds

• Australia’s 10-year yield declined one basis point to 4.41%

Commodities

• West Texas Intermediate crude rose 0.8% to $62 a barrel
• Spot gold fell 0.2% to $3,349.45 an ounce