United States stock futures were mostly flat on Wednesday evening (Thursday AEST), following gains in the regular session as investors shrugged off renewed tariff concerns.
By 9:35 am AEST (11:35 pm GMT) Dow Jones Industrial Average futures, S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures were trading within a range of ±0.1%.
In after-hours trading, WK Kellogg surged 55.9% following media reports that Ferrero is preparing a US$3 billion acquisition of the cereal company.
Costco rose 0.9% after the retail giant reported an 8% year-on-year increase in June net sales, indicating sustained consumer demand.
The calm in futures followed a positive close for U.S. benchmark averages. The Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.9% to close at a record high, while the S&P 500 and Dow added 0.6% and 0.5%, respectively.
The gains were largely attributed to investor enthusiasm around artificial intelligence, with Nvidia shares rising 1.8% and briefly pushing the chipmaker’s market capitalisation to US$4 trillion.
The AI-fuelled optimism helped offset concerns around President Donald Trump’s intensifying trade stance. On Wednesday evening (Thursday AEST), Trump announced a fresh 50% tariff on Brazil, citing an “unfair trade relationship” and responding to what he called a politically charged trial of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro for attempting to overturn the 2022 election.
This latest move adds to a deluge of tariff updates from the president this week. Trump has already issued letters outlining new U.S. tariff rates on imports from at least 21 countries, including Japan, South Korea, and several others, with the duties scheduled to take effect from 1 August.
Markets have so far taken the widening tariff campaign in stride, particularly as AI-driven tech stocks have overshadowed trade headlines.
However, the inflationary impact of the new duties and their effect on employment remain a concern for policymakers.
Minutes from the Federal Reserve’s June meeting, also released Wednesday (Thursday AEST), showed that officials were divided on the path forward for interest rates.
While most saw at least some rate reductions this year as appropriate, others warned that inflation remained too high to justify cuts in the near term. The tariff outlook was cited as a factor contributing to inflation uncertainty.
Investors are now looking ahead to Thursday’s economic data, with weekly jobless claims expected to show a slight increase of 2,000 to 235,000.