Wall Street pointed higher early Tuesday, the Associated Press reports, a day after skepticism about the strength and safety of U.S. investments due to President Donald Trump’s trade war, and his attacks on the Fed Chair Jerome Powell, sent markets sharply lower. Futures for the S&P 500 rose 0.8% before the bell. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average also rose 0.8%, and Nasdaq futures gained 0.9%.
Trump has been demanding that the central bank lower its key interest rate to boost the economy. The Fed has resisted lowering rates quickly, which could reignite inflation. Moreover, any attempt to unseat Powell would likely set off a crisis in global financial markets.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury climbed to 4.43% overnight before settling at 4.39% in the morning. That’s still up from 4.34% at the end of last week about 4% earlier this month, a substantial move for the bond market.
In equities trading early Tuesday, First Solar jumped 7.2% after the Department of Commerce finalized harsher-than-expected solar tariffs on some southeast Asian communities.
Northrop Grumman tumbled 10.6% after it reported that its first-quarter sales fell from a year ago.
Technology companies, which have taken some of the biggest beatings during the recent market volatility, inched up in premarket Tuesday. Nvidia and Meta Platforms rose less than 1% before the bell.
Meta shares have declined for seven consecutive days, the longest losing streak for the company since April 2023.
Tesla shares inched up less than 1% in premarket ahead of its quarterly earnings report after the bell Tuesday. Its shares are down about 40% since the beginning of 2025.
In energy trading, benchmark U.S. crude gained 93 cents to $63.34 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, rose 88 cents to $67.14 per barrel.
The U.S. dollar edged down to 140.24 Japanese yen from 140.80 yen.
