United States stock futures ticked higher on Wednesday evening (Thursday AEST), extending a historic rally on Wall Street overnight as President Donald Trump's decision to temporarily roll back some tariffs boosted risk appetites.
By 8:35 am AEST (10:35 pm GMT), Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were up 0.5%, S&P 500 futures had gained 0.4%, and Nasdaq-100 futures rose 0.2%.
In extended trading, Constellation Brands shares fell 3.8% after issuing a full-year forecast that missed analysts’ expectations. Despite that, the company’s fiscal 2025 fourth-quarter earnings and revenue came in above estimates.
During the regular session, the Dow Jones surged 7.9% to 40,608.5, the S&P 500 advanced 9.5% to 5,456.9, and the Nasdaq Composite jumped 12.2% to 17,125.0.
Markets soared after Trump announced a 90-day pause on his "reciprocal" tariff policy, lowering the rate to 10% for most trading partners. Canada and Mexico were exempted from the additional 10% duty.
In a press conference, Trump explained: “I thought that people were jumping a little bit out of line. They were getting yippy, you know, they were getting a little bit yippy, a little bit afraid.”
However, tariffs on Chinese goods remain significantly higher. Trump confirmed that a 125% rate on Chinese imports would stay in place for now.
Looking ahead, investors are focused on key economic data. The U.S. consumer price index (CPI) for March and weekly jobless claims are due later in Thursday's session (Friday AEST), while the producer price index (PPI) for the same month will be released Friday (Saturday AEST).