Wall Street Rebounds After S&P 500 Correction Amid Trade War Tensions

U.S. stock futures edged higher Thursday night after Wall Street saw the S&P 500 slip into correction territory. S&P 500 Futures rose 0.5% to 5,553.0 points, Nasdaq 100 Futures gained 0.6% to 19,359.50, and Dow Jones Futures added 0.3% to 40,987.0.

The rebound followed Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer’s support for a Republican-backed stopgap funding bill, aiming to prevent a government shutdown as current funding expires Friday at midnight. The bill passed the House earlier this week.

February’s Producer Price Index (PPI) remained flat, easing inflation concerns after a 0.6% jump in January. Annual PPI growth slowed to 3.2% from January’s 3.7%. This follows softer Consumer Price Index (CPI) data, yet markets still tumbled. The S&P 500 fell 1.4% to 5,521.17, officially entering correction territory with a 10% drop from its recent peak. The Dow slid 1.3%, and the Nasdaq lost 2%.

Trade war fears drove the sell-off, with investors worrying that rising tariffs could fuel inflation and recession risks. Tech stocks suffered, with Tesla falling 2.4%, Meta losing 4.7%, and Apple dropping 3.4%. Intel, however, surged 14.6% after naming Lip-Bu Tan as CEO.

Adding to concerns, President Donald Trump threatened 200% tariffs on European alcohol in response to the EU’s planned 50% tariff on American whiskey. The EU move, effective April 1, follows recent U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum. Trump vowed retaliatory action unless the EU withdraws its levy, potentially increasing consumer prices in both regions.

With trade tensions escalating and economic uncertainty looming, markets remain on edge despite a temporary recovery in futures trading.