US stocks faltered before the bell on Thursday, pulling back from a bid for fresh records as AI optimism waned and markets waited for more detail on President Donald Trump’s tariff plans.
S&P 500 futures (ES=F) slipped roughly 0.2%, coming off a three-day win streak that saw the benchmark index close Wednesday on the cusp of setting a new all-time high. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures (YM=F) traded broadly flat with a record still within reach.
Meanwhile, Nasdaq 100 futures (NQ=F) fell 0.5% as tech stocks struggled to regain the momentum that propelled the previous day’s gains. Nvidia (NVDA) shares tipped lower in pre-market, as fellow megacap techs Apple (AAPL) and Google parent Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL) also lost ground.
Investors are still digesting Trump’s early-days policy charge, which brought an AI push that invigorated tech names but left unclear when the outlined tariffs on big trading partners — a risk for inflation and stocks — might hit. The focus is now on Trump’s speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos later Thursday for more insight into his “shock and awe” trade policy.
Yahoo Finance is on the ground at Davos. See the latest from the world’s business leaders here.
Shares in Amazon (AMZN) and Tesla (TSLA) edged lower after business shifts by the tech leaders in Canada, a prime tariff target for Trump. The e-commerce giant will close its warehouses in Quebec, with a loss of about 1,700 jobs, while Tesla plans hefty price hikes on all its EV models sold in Canada.
Eyes are on earnings to provide a fillip for markets, after Netflix (NFLX) set the tone. GE Aerospace (GE) shares popped after the jet engine maker reported a stronger full-year profit and announced plans to raise its share buybacks and dividend. But American Airlines (AAL) stock slid amid a downbeat 2025 profit forecast. Quarterly reports from Texas Instruments (TXN) and Alaska Airlines (ALK) are also on the docket on Thursday.
US jobless claims increased by 6,000 to 223,000, according to the latest government data released on Thursday morning. Economists had been expecting a read of 220,000.
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