US Stock Futures Hold Firm as Trump Buys More Time for Talks: Markets Wrap

Stocks firmed as initial jitters over the Trump administration’s latest tariff announcements gave way to optimism that there’s ample room for further negotiations.

S&P 500 futures edged higher 0.1% after moving off a record high in the previous session. European stocks were little changed while a gauge for Asian equities gained. Global bonds retreated, with the 10-year US Treasury yield advancing two basis points to 4.40%. The dollar fell 0.2%, resuming this year’s downward trend.

Tuesday’s market steadiness reflects traders’ belief in a familiar pattern of Trump escalating his trade war only to later de-escalate, betting that any eventual tariffs will be set at a level the global economy can absorb. In the latest round, Trump said he was still open to negotiations and pushed off increased duties until at least Aug. 1.

“Equity markets are focused on the positive news,” said Wolf von Rotberg, equity strategist at Bank J. Safra Sarasin. “Europe is working toward securing a framework agreement with the US and the July 9th deadline was pushed out by another month. The market has learned to focus on the facts more than following the talk.”

The European Union is seeking to conclude a preliminary trade deal with the US this week that would allow it to lock in a 10% tariff rate beyond Aug. 1 as they negotiate a permanent agreement. Politico reported the US offered a deal that would keep the 10% baseline levies, with exemptions for sensitive sectors.

So far, the US economy has held up under the threat of a spiraling global trade war. Hiring is healthy, while the S&P 500 hit a record high last week.

“This all looking like a negotiating ploy from the White House,” said Michael Brown, senior research strategist at Pepperstone Group in London. “That former leg of the bull case, though, could well become much more fragile, the longer the present degree of policy volatility persists.”

• Novartis AG won regulatory approval for the first medicine designed for babies with malaria, the latest development in the global fight against the mosquito-borne disease.

• Porsche AG warned of a tough road ahead for sales this year after a slowdown in the lucrative US market and persistent weakness in China.

• BP Plc signed an accord with Libya’s National Oil Corp. to study reviving two huge oil fields in the African nation.

• LVMH named Michael Burke to head its Americas operations, bringing back an old-time fixer to take on some of the biggest challenges the group has faced in the region.

• Samsung Electronics Co.’s profit fell for the first time since 2023, hurt by US curbs on China-bound AI chips and hiccups in its plans to sell cutting-edge memory to Nvidia Corp.

• Apple Inc.’s top executive in charge of artificial intelligence models is leaving for Meta Platforms Inc., another setback in the iPhone maker’s struggling AI efforts.

• Jane Street Group LLC told its employees that India’s securities regulator made “many erroneous or unsupported assertions” about its trading activity in the country

Some of the main moves in markets:

Stocks

• The Stoxx Europe 600 was little changed as of 9:07 a.m. London time

• S&P 500 futures rose 0.1%

• Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.3%

• Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average were little changed

• The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 0.3%

• The MSCI Emerging Markets Index rose 0.4%

Currencies

• The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.2%

• The euro rose 0.4% to $1.1757

• The Japanese yen was little changed at 146.13 per dollar

• The offshore yuan rose 0.1% to 7.1717 per dollar

• The British pound rose 0.2% to $1.3634

Cryptocurrencies

• Bitcoin rose 0.6% to $108,496.64

• Ether rose 0.8% to $2,553.78

Bonds

• The yield on 10-year Treasuries advanced two basis points to 4.40%

• Germany’s 10-year yield advanced four basis points to 2.69%

• Britain’s 10-year yield advanced three basis points to 4.61%

Commodities

• Brent crude fell 0.5% to $69.25 a barrel

• Spot gold fell 0.3% to $3,327.14 an ounce