US stock futures inched lower as investors digested President Donald Trump’s announcement of 25% tariffs on global steel and aluminum imports.
Futures attached to the S&P 500 (ES=F) slipped 0.2%, while Dow futures (YM=F) fell 0.1%, and Nasdaq futures (NQ=F) declined 0.2%.
Trump imposed 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports on Monday night. The tariffs are due to take effect on March 4th and apply to all countries, including Canada and Mexico, the two top suppliers of the metals in the US. The US neighbors are also scrambling to strike a deal to avoid being subject to another set of tariffs on March 1.
In tech, AI spending fears continue to drag down investor confidence in the Magnificent Seven. Amazon (AMZN), Google (GOOG), Apple (AAPL), Nvidia (NVDA), Microsoft (MSFT), and Tesla (TSLA) have all seen losses from weak earnings in recent weeks. Meta (META) remains the only member of the group to post double digit gains so far this year.
Meta also attracted Wall Street’s attention on Monday as it began to lay off workers as part of CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s pledge to cut thousands of jobs from the company in a push to find AI talent. In total around 3,600 people, or 5% of the company, are expected to be laid off in the process.
In commodities, coffee futures rose 6% to an all-time high of over $4.30 a pound. References to panic-buying have hit the bean price, where low yield and high demand have led to a 35% price increase this year. Brazil and Vietnam, the two largest international suppliers, are not expected to be able to raise output until 2026.
On Tuesday, Coca-Cola earnings are expected to show a quarter of growth in the company’s battle with PepsiCo. Wall Street anticipates Q4 revenue of $10.67 billion and earnings per share of $0.52.
Super Micro Computer (SMCI), Lyft (LYFT), and DoorDash (DASH) are also set to report earnings on Tuesday.
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