U.S. stock futures fluctuate in early morning trading: Dow drops slightly by 17 points, Nasdaq and S&P both retreat.

Taiwan • Business • 05/16 02:58
U.S. stock futures fluctuate in early morning trading: Dow drops slightly by 17 points, Nasdaq and S&P both retreat.

On May 16, 2025 (local time in Taipei), in early trading, U.S. stock futures were volatile. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures stood at 42,368 points, down 17 points or 0.04%; the S&P 500 futures were at 5,925.25 points, down 8 points or 0.13%; and the Nasdaq 100 futures were at 21,361.75 points, down 38.5 points or 0.18%. This was in contrast to the rise seen at 08:31, when futures for the three major indices saw a slight uptick. After a mixed performance in the previous trading day, investor sentiment was cautious.

Key Updates

05/16 22:55

U.S.-China Tariff Deal and Trump's Visit to the Middle East Boosts the Market: Tech Stocks Lead the Gains, All Three Major U.S. Stock Indices Rise

On May 16, 2025, the US stock market closed higher across the board due to a 90-day tariff suspension agreement reached between US-China and a $200 billion trade agreement as a result of President Trump's visit to the Middle East. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 331 points, the S&P 500 Index closed in the green for the fifth consecutive day, and the Nasdaq Composite rose by nearly 100 points. Tech stocks led the rally, with Tesla and Nvidia stocks rising 17% and 16% respectively this week. However, the US consumer confidence index dropped to its second-lowest level on record, and inflation expectations hit their highest level since 1981, contributing to market uncertainty.

05/16 21:54

U.S. stocks have rebounded strongly this week: Outstanding corporate earnings, relief from U.S.-China tariffs, and diminished inflationary pressure

In the second week of May 2025, the U.S. stock market rebounded strongly, with the S&P 500 index rising nearly 5% for the week. Driving factors included corporate earnings exceeding expectations, a temporary pause in the US-China tariff war, inflation data indicating reduced pressures, and market expectations of a shift in Federal Reserve policies. However, the technology and semiconductor sectors performed weakly, reflecting the market's conflicting views on the AI boom versus the real economy.

05/16 18:26

S&P 500 Index Rises for Five Straight Days: Eased US-China Trade Tensions and Corporate Mergers and Acquisitions Lift Market Sentiment

On May 16, 2025, the S&P 500 index of the U.S. stock market rose for the fifth consecutive trading day, with a total weekly gain of 4.5%. The rally was driven by a reduction in U.S.-China trade tensions, the merger between Charter and Cox, a depreciating dollar, moderate inflation figures, and expectations of a potential rate cut by the Federal Reserve. Investors moved funds back into riskier assets, and market sentiment warmed.

05/16 09:54

U.S. stocks have risen for four straight days: Market sentiment has improved, but the Federal Reserve warns about the risks of supply shocks.

U.S. stocks continued to rise this week, with the S&P 500 index closing higher for four consecutive days. The Dow Jones index rose over 270 points on May 15, due to the easing of U.S.-China tariffs and improving economic data, which boosted market confidence. Federal Reserve Chairman Powell warned that supply shocks could become more frequent and persistent, highlighting that the market still faces risks. Issues such as supply chain bottlenecks, policy uncertainty, and weak consumer spending remain, urging investors to remain vigilant.

05/16 02:58

In April, the US Producer Price Index (PPI) saw its largest decline in five years, putting pressure on technology stocks, leading to mixed results in the US stock market; the Taiwan stock market closed at 21,730 points, as foreign investors have been net buyers for ten consecutive days.

The U.S. Producer Price Index (PPI) fell by 0.5% in April, marking the largest monthly drop in five years, mainly due to a decrease in service prices, indicating a reduction in inflationary pressures. Following the release of this data, the U.S. stock market showed mixed performance, as the Dow Jones and S&P 500 rose, while the Nasdaq and Philadelphia Semiconductor Index fell. On the 15th, Taiwan's weighted index closed down by 52.62 points to 21,730.25, as foreign investors net bought for the tenth consecutive day, with a single-day net purchase of NT$7.534 billion, accumulating over NT$200 billion in net purchases over ten days.

05/16 02:58

U.S. stock futures fluctuate in early morning trading: Dow drops slightly by 17 points, Nasdaq and S&P both retreat.

On May 16, 2025 (local time in Taipei), in early trading, U.S. stock futures were volatile. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures stood at 42,368 points, down 17 points or 0.04%; the S&P 500 futures were at 5,925.25 points, down 8 points or 0.13%; and the Nasdaq 100 futures were at 21,361.75 points, down 38.5 points or 0.18%. This was in contrast to the rise seen at 08:31, when futures for the three major indices saw a slight uptick. After a mixed performance in the previous trading day, investor sentiment was cautious.

05/16 01:24

JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon, in Paris, warns about recession risks, and the uncertainty surrounding US-China trade negotiations is impacting US stock performance.

On May 15, 2025, JPMorgan Chase's CEO, Jamie Dimon, warned at the Global Markets Conference in Paris that despite the easing of US-China tariff tensions, global economic uncertainties and recession risks still exist. Progress in the US-China trade negotiations has been limited, and market sentiment is cautious. On that day, the performance of US stocks was mixed, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average rising 271 points, the S&P 500 closing higher for the fourth consecutive day, while the Nasdaq and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index experienced slight declines.

05/15 22:55

US stocks are mixed: Employment data is steady, IMF cuts global growth forecast; US-South Korea forex talks lead to Korean won fluctuations

On May 16, 2025, the major indices of the U.S. stock market had mixed performances, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average rising by 0.65% and the S&P 500 Index by 0.41%, while the Nasdaq Index fell by 0.18%. The U.S. non-farm employment report for April showed an increase of 177,000 jobs, with the unemployment rate remaining at 4.2%. The IMF downgraded the 2025 global economic growth forecast to 2.8%, citing U.S. tariff policies as the reason. The U.S.-South Korea foreign exchange policy talks led to fluctuations in the Korean won, and the appreciation of the New Taiwan dollar attracted attention, though the Taiwan-U.S. tariff negotiations did not address exchange rate issues.

05/15 21:23

U.S. stock market closed with mixed results: Cisco's stock rose as its financial forecast was revised upward, while UnitedHealth's stock plunged due to a judicial investigation.

On May 15, 2025, the U.S. stock market closed with mixed performance. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose over 270 points due to Cisco's upward revision of its full-year forecast, while the S&P 500 Index increased for the fourth consecutive day. The Nasdaq Index edged down due to declines in tech stocks such as Amazon and Meta. Cisco's stock price jumped more than 5% on strong AI demand, while UnitedHealth tumbled 11% after reports of a criminal investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice, hitting a five-year low, making it the market's focal point.

05/15 08:26

Trump Announces "Tariff Freedom Day": S&P 500 Strongly Rebounds, Retail Investors Cause Significant Market Fluctuations

On April 9, 2025, President Trump of the United States announced "Tariff Liberation Day," significantly lowering tariffs on Chinese goods and reached an agreement with China to suspend the trade war for 90 days. This policy shift caused market fluctuations, with the S&P 500 index initially dropping and then rising, resulting in an "artificial bull market." The CNN Fear and Greed Index surged to 70, indicating that market sentiment had shifted into the greed zone. This article examines the impact of the policy shift on the stock market and how retail investors dominated the market rebound.

Changes in Early Trading of US Stock Futures

According to a MoneyDJ news report at 08:31 Taipei time, the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures briefly rose 27 points to 42,412 points, an increase of 0.06%; the S&P 500 futures rose 1.75 points to 5,935 points, an increase of 0.03%; the Nasdaq 100 futures rose 6.75 points to 21,407 points, also an increase of 0.03%. However, just an hour later, all three major index futures turned downward, indicating increased short-term market volatility.

As of 09:31, Dow futures fell to 42,368 points, down 44 points from the previous hour; S&P 500 futures were at 5,925.25 points, down 9.75 points from the previous hour; Nasdaq 100 futures fell to 21,361.75 points, with a decline expanding to 38.5 points. This change reflects the market's uncertainty in response to current economic data and policy signals.

Performance of US Stock Spot Market on the Previous Trading Day

According to a report by Sanli News Network, the four major US stock indices showed mixed performance on May 15 (Eastern Time). The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 271 points, closing at 42,412 points, an increase of 0.65%; the S&P 500 index closed higher for the fourth consecutive day, rising 0.41%; however, the Nasdaq Composite Index slightly fell by 34 points, and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index also retreated by 0.57%. Financial and industrial stocks led the Dow, indicating a flow of funds into value and cyclical stocks.

Real-Time Quotes in the Futures Market

According to Business Insider's quotes as of 23:47 Eastern Time on May 15, the main US stock futures indices are as follows:

  • Dow Jones Industrial Average futures (YM=F) at 41,423 points, down 45 points, a decrease of 0.11%.
  • S&P 500 futures (ES=F) at 5,932.75 points, down 1.25 points, a decrease of 0.02%.
  • Nasdaq 100 futures (NQ=F) at 21,403.50 points, up 7 points, an increase of 0.03%.

These figures slightly differ from the early trading quotes in Taipei time, reflecting changes in market sentiment across different trading sessions.

Related ETFs and Stock Movements

In terms of ETFs, the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF (DIA), which tracks the Dow Jones Index, closed at $423.48, up 0.70% on the previous trading day; the triple-leveraged Dow Jones ETF UDOW rose 2.09%, closing at $85.03. Conversely, the inverse Dow ETFs SDOW and DOG fell by 2.02% and 0.67%, respectively.

In individual stocks, Cisco (CSCO) rose 4.85% to close at $64.26 due to better-than-expected earnings; UnitedHealth (UNH) plummeted 10.93% to close at $274.35 due to news of a Department of Justice investigation. Tech giants like Apple (AAPL) and Nvidia (NVDA) saw slight declines of 0.41% and 0.38%, respectively.

Economic Data and Market Reaction

The latest US economic data shows that the Producer Price Index (PPI) for April had a monthly growth rate of -0.5%, the largest decline in five years, with an annual growth rate of 2.4%, below the expected 2.5%. The core PPI annual growth rate was 3.1%, with a monthly growth rate of -0.4%. Additionally, the monthly growth rate of retail sales in April was only 0.1%, indicating a slowdown in consumer momentum.

These data reinforce market expectations that the Federal Reserve (Fed) may cut interest rates, leading to a decline in the US 10-year Treasury yield to 4.44%. According to The Globe and Mail, the market currently estimates a 91.7% probability of the Fed maintaining rates at the June meeting, with an 8.3% probability of a 25 basis point rate cut.

International Market and Forex Overview

In the international market, Asian stocks generally weakened. The Nikkei 225 index fell 0.34%, and the Hong Kong Hang Seng Index fell 0.79%. Most major European stock markets rose, with the UK FTSE 100 index up 0.92% and the German DAX index up 0.72%.

In the forex market, the US dollar index fell to 100.46, reflecting a weaker dollar. The euro was at 1.1203 against the dollar, the British pound at 1.3316, and the Japanese yen at 145.2490 against the dollar.

References

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