Futures are pointing to a lower open for major indexes on Wednesday as chip stocks slide amid concerns about U.S. export restrictions to China.
Futures tied to the S&P 500 and tech-heavy Nasdaq were down 0.7% and 1.4%, respectively, in recent trading, while those linked to the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell fractionally. The major indexes closed slightly lower on Tuesday in a relatively calm session after a volatile few weeks of trading fueled by concerns about tariffs and a brewing global trade war, notably growing tensions between the U.S. and China.
Nvidia (NVDA) was leading the move lower in premarket trading, falling nearly 7%, after the company announced it would take a $5.5 billion charge after the U.S. limited exports of its AI chips to China. Shares of Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), which reportedly faces similar restrictions, were also down about 7%.
Among other noteworthy movers, ASML Holding (ASML) fell more than 4% after the Dutch manufacturer of semiconductor-producing machinery reported worse-than-expected earnings and issued a soft outlook. Broadcom (AVGO), Micron (MU) and Marvell Technology (MRVL) each dropped about 4%, as did the VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH).
Mega-cap technology stocks were down across the board ahead of the bell. Alphabet (GOOG), Meta Platforms (META) and Tesla (TSLA) each fell about 2%, while Apple (AAPL), Microsoft (MSFT) and Amazon (AMZN) dropped 1%.
United Airlines (UAL) soared 6% after a strong quarterly earnings report. Shares of other airlines, including Delta (DAL) and American (AAL), were also posting solid gains this morning.
Gold futures were up 2.5% at $3,320 an ounce, as the precious metal continues to hit fresh record highs. West Texas Intermediate futures, the U.S. crude oil benchmark, were up 1% at $61.95.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury note, which affects borrowing costs on all sorts of loans, notably mortgages, was holding steady at 4.34% this morning. The yield had fallen to below 3.90% earlier this month and rose as high as 4.50% last week as investors reassessed their holdings in U.S. government debt amid the concerns about the potential impact of U.S. trade policy.
Bitcoin was little-changed this morning at around $84,000.