Trump announces 100% chip tariff as Apple ups U.S. investment
(Corrects day in paragraph 1)
* Futures down: Dow 0.40%, S&P 500 0.45%, Nasdaq 0.35%
By Shriya Ramakrishnan
Dec 8 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures dipped on Tuesday
as surging coronavirus cases threatened to further hamper a
slowing economic revival, while investors waited for progress in
ongoing negotiations for a fresh COVID-19 relief package.
Most residents in California, the nation's most populous
state, faced new restrictions on Monday after record case
numbers and hospitalizations, while officials in New York warned
similar restrictions could come into effect soon. Nationwide, COVID-19 infections are at their peak, with an
average of 193,863 new cases reported each day over the past
week, according to a Reuters tally of official data, and health
officials warned that the worst is yet to come. The S&P 500 .SPX and the blue-chip Dow .DJI fell on
Monday, but the Nasdaq .IXIC closed at record levels as
investors returned to technology mega-cap stocks, which have
thrived from the pandemic-induced shift to work from home.
Positive developments related to the COVID-19 vaccine have
in the recent past helped investors look past the surge in
infections and raise bets on a swift economic recovery next
year.
That pushed Wall Street's major indexes to all-time highs
recently and the hardest hit cyclical stocks, which are more
economically sensitive, have sprung to life after
underperforming for most of the year.
Market participants are closely watching whether
policymakers will be able to clinch an agreement on a
long-awaited COVID-19 relief bill and a $1.4 trillion spending
bill, with Friday eyed as a possible deadline to avoid a
government shutdown.
The U.S. Congress will vote this week on a one-week stopgap
funding bill to provide more time for lawmakers to reach a deal
on both spending and pandemic relief. Pressure has mounted on policymakers to deliver a fresh
infusion of aid to families and businesses reeling from the
virus outbreak. Lawmakers enacted $3 trillion in aid earlier
this year, but have not been able to agree on fresh relief since
April.
At 6:35 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis 1YMcv1 were down 120 points,
or 0.40%, S&P 500 e-minis EScv1 were down 16.75 points, or
0.45%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis NQcv1 were down 43.5 points, or
0.35%.
Among individual stocks, Tesla Inc TSLA.O fell 2.8%
premarket after it unveiled plans to raise up to $5 billion in a
share offering.