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Investing.com-- U.S. stock index futures rose on Tuesday evening after growing concerns over a cooling economy and increased trade tariffs sparked a series of steep losses on Wall Street.
Focus was now squarely on quarterly earnings from market darling NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA), which are due after the close on Wednesday. The stock clocked three straight sessions of steep losses, as investors locked in profits ahead of its earnings.
Gains in futures were limited as U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to impose trade tariffs on copper imports, claiming that production and refinement of the red metal needed to return to the U.S.
Wall Street was also nursing a series of bruising losses as signs of weakening consumer sentiment drummed up concerns over a cooling economy. Trump’s repeated tariff threats also weighed, as did a rout in technology shares ahead of Nvidia’s earnings.
Trump threatens copper import tariffs, Freeport rallies
Trump on Tuesday signed an executive order exploring import tariffs on copper over what he alleged were unfair global trade practices.
Trump claimed the move was to spur more domestic copper production and was also aimed at reducing the dominance of one entity- likely China- in the global copper market.
Freeport-McMoran (NYSE:FCX)- the biggest copper producer in the U.S.- rallied as much as 5% on Trump’s order.
Trump’s threat comes after he imposed 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum imports earlier this month, with both moves aimed at pushing up local production, while also pressuring top exporter China.
But the president’s tariff threats were received poorly by markets, given that they pushed up concerns over retaliatory measures and disruptions in global trade.
Trump’s tariffs- which will be borne by U.S. importers- are also expected to disrupt some business operations, and could underpin inflation.
Trump signaled earlier this week that his planned 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico will likely take effect from the first week of March.
Nvidia rises after bruising losses; earnings in focus
Nvidia rose 1.3% in aftermarket trade on Tuesday, after the stock clocked three straight days of steep declines in the run-up to its earnings.
While the company is expected to clock strong earnings growth on sustained demand from the artificial intelligence industry, its outlook on future demand will be closely watched.
Nvidia makes the most advanced AI chips in the market and is considered as a bellwether for the industry. Wednesday’s print also comes amid growing doubts over the need for outsized capital investment in AI, especially after the release of China’s DeepSeek.
Losses in Nvidia spilled over into broader tech stocks, which in turn pressured Wall Street this week. U.S. stocks were also dented by growing concerns over a cooling economy.
The S&P 500 fell 0.5% to 5,955.36 points, while the NASDAQ Composite fell 1.4% to 19,026.39 points. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.4% to 43,621.34 points.