The Market Brief
Hey team. US equity futures edged higher as investors remain optimistic that the impact of U.S. tariffs will be manageable.
Let’s re-cap Tuesday’s session and see what’s next for the market!
Macro Viewpoint
U.S. stock index futures climbed on Wednesday as investors welcomed robust quarterly earnings reports and a significant funding boost for the AI technology industry announced by President Donald Trump.
Positive economic data suggesting strong growth alongside cooling underlying inflation has encouraged risk-taking on Wall Street in recent days. Coupled with Trump’s relatively moderate stance on tariffs, these factors have pushed the benchmark S&P 500 to within 1% of record highs.
However, Trump has reminded markets of the ongoing risks, cautioning that tariffs on imports from China, Mexico, Canada, and the European Union could take effect on February 1. This has kept concerns about a potential trade war and renewed inflation pressures alive.
Meanwhile, traders widely anticipate that the Federal Reserve will keep interest rates unchanged at its meeting next week, with expectations for the central bank to implement its first rate cut of the year in July.
