(Bloomberg) — US stock futures tumbled further in early trading on Friday after China retaliated against new US tariffs with levies on all American imports.
Stock futures tied to the S&P 500 Index were down as much as 4.1% by 7:32 a.m. in New York, while those linked to the Nasdaq 100 Index slumped as much as 4.6%. The drop comes as China retaliated against US tariffs with its levies of its own, imposing a 34% tariff on all American imports starting April 10, according to the official Xinhua News Agency.
Volatility has come roaring back as the Cboe Volatility Index soared above 45. A continuation of the selloff on Friday — when the government’s jobs report for March is released — threatens to extend the S&P’s losses to six of the past seven weeks. Fund managers yanked $4.7 billion out of US stocks in the week through April 2 in the second week of outflows, data compiled by EPFR Global and Bank of America show.
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“The market is bleeding and more pain is clearly coming as this escalating trade war risks pushing the US economy into a recession,” Luca Paolini, chief strategist at Pictet Asset Management said over the phone. “It’s not a surprise China would retaliate. But this will inevitably cause a recession because the damage is done — unless Trump backs off.”
Friday’s losses follow a massive wipe out by US stocks on Thursday that erased $2.5 trillion in value in the wake of President Donald Trump’s drastic new trade tariffs which ignited widespread recession fears.
Trump on Wednesday imposed the steepest American tariffs in a century, saying he will apply a 10% tariff on all exports to the US, with even higher duties on some 60 nations, to counter large trade imbalances with the US.
Later this morning, investors will get a look at the Us government’s monthly jobs print — the first major piece of data for the quarter — which could have wide-ranging implications for bond, stock and currency markets as well as the Fed’s next moves. Chair Jerome Powell is scheduled to deliver remarks at 11:25 a.m. in Arlington, Virginia, which will be parsed for signs of weakness spreading to the workforce.
“How bad will it get for the economy? With so much uncertainty swirling, stocks are selling off and that’s signaling that investors see both economic and profit growth slowing because of the trade war,” Adam Sarhan, founder of 50 Park Investments said by phone.
The derivatives market is pricing in more volatility ahead. Options traders are betting that the S&P 500 will move roughly 1.6% in either direction after the jobs print today, based on the price of at-the-money straddles, according to Citigroup Inc. That’s well above the average straddle price for a 0.9% swing in either direction over the past 12 months.
The equity rout now has Wall Street’s biggest stock bull — Oppenheimer’s John Stoltzfus — rethinking his 7,100 price target on the S&P 500, which is among the highest on Wall Street tracked by Bloomberg and would imply a 25% gain through Thursday’s close. That comes as RBC Capital Markets’s Lori Calvasina cut her price target on the index for a second time this year to 5,550 from 6,200, given a dimmer outlook for economic and profit growth.
“Without a doubt, where we’re sitting here it is under review and has been under review for awhile,” John Stoltzfus said on Bloomberg Television Friday. “The reality has been until we got these rather surprising unpleasant levels of tariffs and the market’s reaction, we’re naturally going to have to take a look and sharpen our pencils, so to speak.”
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©2025 Bloomberg L.P.
(Bloomberg) — US stock futures tumbled further in early trading on Friday after China retaliated against new US tariffs with levies on all American imports.
Stock futures tied to the S&P 500 Index were down as much as 4.1% by 7:32 a.m. in New York, while those linked to the Nasdaq 100 Index slumped as much as 4.6%. The drop comes as China retaliated against US tariffs with its levies of its own, imposing a 34% tariff on all American imports starting April 10, according to the official Xinhua News Agency.
Volatility has come roaring back as the Cboe Volatility Index soared above 45. A continuation of the selloff on Friday — when the government’s jobs report for March is released — threatens to extend the S&P’s losses to six of the past seven weeks. Fund managers yanked $4.7 billion out of US stocks in the week through April 2 in the second week of outflows, data compiled by EPFR Global and Bank of America show.
Listen to the Here’s Why podcast on Apple, Spotify or anywhere you listen.
“The market is bleeding and more pain is clearly coming as this escalating trade war risks pushing the US economy into a recession,” Luca Paolini, chief strategist at Pictet Asset Management said over the phone. “It’s not a surprise China would retaliate. But this will inevitably cause a recession because the damage is done — unless Trump backs off.”
Friday’s losses follow a massive wipe out by US stocks on Thursday that erased $2.5 trillion in value in the wake of President Donald Trump’s drastic new trade tariffs which ignited widespread recession fears.
Trump on Wednesday imposed the steepest American tariffs in a century, saying he will apply a 10% tariff on all exports to the US, with even higher duties on some 60 nations, to counter large trade imbalances with the US.
Later this morning, investors will get a look at the Us government’s monthly jobs print — the first major piece of data for the quarter — which could have wide-ranging implications for bond, stock and currency markets as well as the Fed’s next moves. Chair Jerome Powell is scheduled to deliver remarks at 11:25 a.m. in Arlington, Virginia, which will be parsed for signs of weakness spreading to the workforce.
“How bad will it get for the economy? With so much uncertainty swirling, stocks are selling off and that’s signaling that investors see both economic and profit growth slowing because of the trade war,” Adam Sarhan, founder of 50 Park Investments said by phone.
The derivatives market is pricing in more volatility ahead. Options traders are betting that the S&P 500 will move roughly 1.6% in either direction after the jobs print today, based on the price of at-the-money straddles, according to Citigroup Inc. That’s well above the average straddle price for a 0.9% swing in either direction over the past 12 months.
The equity rout now has Wall Street’s biggest stock bull — Oppenheimer’s John Stoltzfus — rethinking his 7,100 price target on the S&P 500, which is among the highest on Wall Street tracked by Bloomberg and would imply a 25% gain through Thursday’s close. That comes as RBC Capital Markets’s Lori Calvasina cut her price target on the index for a second time this year to 5,550 from 6,200, given a dimmer outlook for economic and profit growth.
“Without a doubt, where we’re sitting here it is under review and has been under review for awhile,” John Stoltzfus said on Bloomberg Television Friday. “The reality has been until we got these rather surprising unpleasant levels of tariffs and the market’s reaction, we’re naturally going to have to take a look and sharpen our pencils, so to speak.”
Bloomberg News is launching a new wrap with all you need to know before the opening bell on Wall Street, including the biggest news breaking overnight, market insight and strategy, analyst actions, earnings previews and more. On the terminal, click NI USDAYBOOK to read.
©2025 Bloomberg L.P.
