US pre-open: Futures higher on tech tariff exemptions
By Iain Gilbert
Date: Monday 14 Apr 2025
(Sharecast News) - Wall Street futures were in the green ahead of the bell on Monday as surprise tariff exemptions from Donald Trump gave sentiment a boost.
As of 1225 BST, Dow Jones futures were up 0.76%, while S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 futures had the indices opening 1.10% and 1.30% firmer, respectively.
The Dow closed 619.05 points higher on Friday, wrapping up one of the most volatile trading weeks on record with solid gains.
US Customs and Border Protection revealed that smartphones and computers, as well as other devices and semiconductors, would be exempted from Donald Trump's newly announced "reciprocal" tariffs, sending shares in the likes of Apple and Nvidia higher.
However, both Trump and commerce secretary Howard Lutnick later indicated that the exemptions weren't permanent, with Trump saying these products were still "subject to the existing 20% Fentanyl Tariffs" and that they were "just moving to a different Tariff 'bucket'."
Trade Nation's David Morrison said: "US stock index futures have begun the week on the front foot, continuing on from Friday's rally. Investors responded to yet another tariff update. After Friday's close, President Trump refined his reciprocal tariffs once again, this time by exempting smartphones and other electronics for now. Yesterday President Trump said that tariffs on semiconductors would be announced over the next week and a decision on phones made 'soon'. This has led to a significant bounce back across tech stocks, with Apple being the standout, having jumped 5% this morning on the news. Despite these gains, US stock indices were still below the highs hit during Wednesday's tumultuous session. This was when equities soared after Mr Trump postponed the vast majority of the reciprocal tariffs announced the previous week.
"Wednesday's surprise softening in trade rhetoric suggests that Trump blinked. The speculation is that it wasn't the sell-off across equities which persuaded him to back down, but concerns amongst his advisors following the extreme volatility and unusual moves in bond markets, especially US Treasuries. Ten days ago, soon after the original reciprocal tariff announcement, the yield on the key 10-year Treasury Note fell to a seven-month low of 3.86%. But it turned on a sixpence/dime briefly trading at 4.50% on Friday. That is an extraordinarily big move and the reasons for it are still not fully understood."
In the corporate space, Goldman Sachs was slated to report earnings on Monday.
No major data points were scheduled for release on Monday.
Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com
Email this article to a friend
or share it with one of these popular networks:
You are here: news
10 Lower Thames St,
London EC3R 6EN