U.S. stock futures dipped Friday, following the implementation of much-anticipated import tariffs by the Trump administration and China.
Investors are also focused on a closely watched monthly jobs report.
What are the main benchmarks doing?Dow Jones Industrial Average futures YMU8, -0.24% slipped by 55 points, or 0.2%, to 24,288, while S&P 500 futures ESU8, -0.12% edged down by 3.60 points, or 0.1%, to 2,735. Nasdaq-100 futures NQU8, -0.17% shed 10.75 points, or 3.60 points, to 7,115.
On Thursday, the Dow DJIA, +0.75% , S&P 500 SPX, +0.86% and Nasdaq Composite COMP, +1.12% closed higher. The three gauges are on track for gains of 0.4% or more for the holiday-shortened week, as of Thursday’s close.
What’s driving markets?The Trump administration officially imposed tariffs on $34 billion of Chinese imports at midnight Eastern Time, and Beijing reportedly had implemented tariffs on the same value in American goods, as promised.
Asian equity markets closed with gains Friday amid talk that a trade war was finally underway. Some analysts said that action was classic — sell the rumor, buy the news. For weeks, stock markets have been selling off worldwide, hurt by worries that a global trade war is developing and could weigh on economic growth.
Meanwhile, the June release on U.S. nonfarm payrolls is due to arrive at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time. Economists polled by MarketWatch forecast the country added 200,000 jobs last month.
Read more: What to watch in the June jobs report
What are strategists saying?“Given the historically low levels of unemployment, which is expected to remain constant at 3.8% in June, a miss on the headline job creation number is not going to cause too much distress,” said Jasper Lawler, head of research at London Capital Group, in a note.
Lawler added that investors also are watching for trade-related news, including any sign of the U.S. or China backing down, saying that “seems incredibly unlikely at this late stage, but with Trump at the helm you never know.”
What are other markets doing?The ICE U.S. Dollar Index DXY, -0.10% was modestly lower, while China’s Shanghai Composite SHCOMP, +0.49% finished up by 0.5% on Friday, paring its weekly drop to 3.5%.
European stocks SXXP, +0.00% were trading mixed, as gold futures GCQ8, -0.29% edged lower, failing to attract much haven demand even as the tariffs kicked in. Oil futures CLQ8, -0.29% were losing ground.
