Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York City, U.S., March 31, 2025.
Brendan McDermid | Reuters
U.S. stock futures fell Tuesday, as the market awaited clarity from President Donald Trump regarding his tariff policy rollout. Tuesday also marks the beginning of the second-quarter after a bumpy first quarter.
Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 232 points, or 0.5%. S&P 500 futures were down 0.4%, alongside Nasdaq-100 futures.
The White House on Wednesday is expected to unveil reciprocal tariffs on goods from virtually all countries. Investors had been hoping for a narrow approach toward administering the levies.
On Tuesday, The Washington Post reported that the Trump administration is considering implementing tariffs of about 20% to most imports into the U.S. To be sure, the report — which cited three sources familiar with the matter — noted that no final decision had been made.
The uncertainty has put stocks on a rollercoaster ride. The S&P 500 on Monday touched a six-month low before recovering. For the first quarter, the index lost 4.6%, while the Nasdaq Composite dropped 10%. That marked the worst quarterly performance for both benchmarks since 2022. The Dow dropped 1.3% during the first three months of the year.
“While the higher event risk baked in creates room for a potential relief rally in case of less aggressive tariffs, the risk arguably is still to the downside, with markets likely underpricing the trade risks,” Barclays assistant vice president Anshul Gupta wrote in a Tuesday note.
On Tuesday, traders will watch out for the ISM manufacturing index for March alongside February’s job openings and construction spending reports.
