U.S. stock futures declined on Friday after ending marginally higher on Thursday. Futures of major benchmark indices were lower.
After President Donald Trump imposed 50% tariffs on Brazil, the country’s President, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, issued a warning Thursday about potential retaliatory tariffs if the U.S. proceeds with its planned 50% tax on Brazilian imports from Aug. 1.
The 10-year Treasury bond yielded 4.38% and the two-year bond was at 3.88%. The CME Group's FedWatch tool’s projections show markets pricing a 93.3% likelihood of the Federal Reserve keeping the current interest rates unchanged in its July meeting.
| Futures | Change (+/-) |
| Dow Jones | -0.62% |
| S&P 500 | -0.57% |
| Nasdaq 100 | -0.50% |
| Russell 2000 | -0.99% |
The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) and Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (NASDAQ:QQQ), which track the S&P 500 index and Nasdaq 100 index, respectively, were lower in premarket on Friday. The SPY was down 0.54% at $622.44, while the QQQ declined 0.47% to $552.86, according to Benzinga Pro data.
Cues From Last Session:
On Thursday, most sectors within the S&P 500 finished higher, with consumer discretionary, utilities, and energy stocks leading the gains.
Conversely, communication services and information technology sectors bucked the trend, ending the session lower. U.S. stocks settled higher overall, with the S&P 500 hitting an all-time high during the day.
A significant boost came from Delta Air Lines Inc. (NYSE:DAL), which surged approximately 12% after reporting second-quarter results that exceeded both earnings and revenue forecasts, signaling a robust demand outlook and igniting a widespread rally across the airline sector.
On the economic front, the U.S. labor market continued to demonstrate resilience, as initial jobless claims decreased to 237,000 last week, surpassing expectations. However, continuing claims increased to 1.965 million, reaching their highest level since 2021.
| Index | Performance (+/-) | Value |
| Nasdaq Composite | 0.094% | 20,630.66 |
| S&P 500 | 0.27% | 6,280.46 |
| Dow Jones | 0.43% | 44,650.64 |
| Russell 2000 | 0.48% | 2,263.41 |
Insights From Analysts:
As the trade-related tussle evolves with the U.S. trading partners, Louis Navellier of Navellier & Associates said that “There is no doubt that the tariffs the Trump Administration is imposing are controversial, but the countries that cooperate with the U.S., like Australia and Britain, are only being hit with 10% baseline tariffs, which should be largely offset by appreciation in the U.S. dollar in the upcoming months.”
Highlighting that the tariff revenue to the U.S. Treasury soared to $24.2 billion in May and is now expected to soar to $60 billion or higher per month in the upcoming months, he added, “I remain in the camp that when all the dust settles, there will be freer trade with fewer tariffs, since many countries cannot fight with the U.S.”
“Markets appear to have become desensitized to tariff news,” said Michelle Gibley, director of international research at the Schwab Center for Financial Research. “There may be some thought that the rates announced won’t be the final tariffs—some of the figures seem random and part of a negotiation.”
Meanwhile, Ed Yardeni of Yardeni Research highlighted that the Warren Buffett Indicator hit an alarming valuation, indicating a potentially overvalued market, but the U.S. economy has demonstrated remarkable resilience.
He pointed out a fascinating paradox: "The economy won't let us down. Despite numerous crises, real GDP has remained recession-resistant since the Covid lockdown during the first half of 2020."
He emphasizes nearly six years without a recession, despite significant global challenges such as the pandemic, the conflict in Ukraine, stricter monetary policies, the Middle East war, and the economic disruption caused by Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Indeed, Yardeni argues, "it really has been the Roaring 2020s so far. Real GDP is at a record high and so is the stock market."
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Upcoming Economic Data
Here’s what investors will keep an eye on Friday:
- Monthly U.S. federal budget data will be released at 2:00 p.m. ET.
Stocks In Focus:
- Strategy Inc. (NASDAQ:MSTR) was up 3.35%, Coinbase Global Inc. (NASDAQ:COIN) rose 2.38%, Riot Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ:RIOT) advanced 2.94%, MARA Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:MARA) was 4.20% higher, along with all the other Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) exposed stocks as the cryptocurrency hit a fresh high of $118,403.89 on Thursday.
- Several drone-related stocks were also higher after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth issued new orders to fast-track drone manufacturing and deployment. This includes Red Cat Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:RCAT), which soared 16.08%, AeroVironment Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV), which advanced 4.11%, Ageagle Aerial Systems Inc. (NYSE:UAVS), which was up 9.68%, and Ondas Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:ONDS) higher by 5.47%.
- Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) jumped 7.25% after reporting stronger-than-expected second-quarter financial results and raising its full-year guidance.
- PriceSmart Inc. (NASDAQ:PSMT) climbed 7.10% higher after reporting better-than-expected third-quarter financial results.
- Frequency Electronics Inc. (NASDAQ:FEIM) tumbled 2.12% after reporting earnings of 34 cents per share for the fourth quarter, up from 28 cents per share in the year-ago period. The company’s sales rose to $19.986 million from $15.576 million.
- E2open Parent Holdings Inc. (NYSE:ETWO) was up 0.31% after posting better-than-expected earnings for its first quarter and affirming its fiscal year 2026 sales guidance.
- WD-40 Co. (NASDAQ:WDFC) was 0.093% higher after posting better-than-expected earnings for its third quarter, while sales missed estimates. The company raised its EPS guidance, but narrowed its sales forecast.
Commodities, Gold, And Global Equity Markets:
Crude oil futures were trading higher in the early New York session by 0.03% to hover around $66.59 per barrel.
Gold Spot US Dollar rose 0.29% to hover around $3,333.71 per ounce. Its last record high stood at $3,500.33 per ounce. The U.S. Dollar Index spot was higher by 0.14% at the 97.7890 level.
Asian markets ended mostly lower on Friday, except China’s CSI 300 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng indices. India's S&P BSE Sensex, Japan's Nikkei 225, South Korea's Kospi, and Australia's ASX 200 indices fell. European markets were lower in early trade.
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