The major U.S. index futures indicate a modestly higher opening on Tuesday, suggesting that stocks may recover some of the losses incurred during the prior session’s sell-off. Market participants might consider acquiring equities at diminished valuations in the wake of yesterday’s decline, which resulted in the Dow reaching its lowest closing point in a month. Purchasing enthusiasm might be relatively muted, as ambiguity surrounding tariffs persists in influencing investor sentiment. Traders may also be hesitant to undertake substantial actions prior to the announcement of quarterly results from AI chipmaker and market leader Nvidia at the conclusion of Wednesday’s trading. “Investors face numerous concerns, and Nvidia’s results on Wednesday could significantly influence market dynamics based on their implications for AI,” stated Dan Coatsworth. He noted that the market this year has exhibited considerable apprehension regarding various aspects associated with AI, including excessive expenditures and potential disruptions to business models. Therefore, Nvidia must maintain its highly optimistic outlook to prevent exacerbating investor concerns. Following a robust performance in the previous week, equities experienced a significant decline during trading on Monday. The major averages experienced notable declines, with the Dow reaching its lowest closing level in a month.
The major averages concluded the day above their session lows, yet remained distinctly in negative territory. The Dow experienced a decline of 821.91 points, representing a 1.7 percent drop, closing at 48,804.06. The Nasdaq fell by 258.80 points, or 1.1 percent, ending at 22,627.27, while the S&P 500 decreased by 71.76 points, equivalent to a 1.0 percent reduction, finishing at 6,837.75. The recent sell-off on market occurred in the context of heightened trade uncertainty, subsequent to the Supreme Court’s ruling last Friday that invalidated the majority of President Donald Trump’s extensive global tariffs. Trump declared in a post on Truth Social on Saturday his intention to increase global tariffs to the “fully allowed” and “legally tested” level of 15 percent, up from the 10 percent he had previously announced following the ruling. In the forthcoming months, the Trump Administration is set to establish and announce new legally permissible tariffs, thereby advancing the ongoing initiative of enhancing America’s greatness to unprecedented levels, as articulated by Trump.
Despite a fact sheet from the White House indicating that the president can impose tariffs for a maximum of 150 days without congressional approval, Trump asserted in a later statement that he is not required to seek congressional consent. Trump also stated that any country seeking to “play games” will face a “much higher Tariff, and worse, than that which they just recently agreed to.” Meanwhile, the European Commission released a statement seeking “full clarity” on the actions the U.S. plans to undertake in the aftermath of the Supreme Court decision. The European Commission characterised the present circumstances as “not conducive” to achieving “fair, balanced, and mutually beneficial” transatlantic trade and investment, as both parties had agreed and outlined in the EU-U.S. Joint Statement of August 2025.”A deal is a deal,” stated the European Commission. “As the largest trading partner of the United States, the EU anticipates that the U.S. will uphold its commitments outlined in the Joint Statement, mirroring the EU’s adherence to its own obligations.”
Negative sentiment was also generated in reaction to a nosedive by shares of IBM Corp., with the tech giant plummeting by 13.2 percent. IBM faced increased scrutiny following the announcement of COBOL capabilities by Anthropic’s Claude. COBOL serves as a programming language extensively utilised in the realm of business data processing, representing a fundamental sector for IBM. Financial stocks exhibited some of the market’s poorest performances on the day, as the KBW Bank Index and the NYSE Arca Securities Broker/Dealer Index declined by 4.4 percent and 3.4 percent, respectively. Significant deterioration was evident in the software sector, as indicated by the 3.9 percent decline in the Dow Jones U.S. Software Index. Stocks in the airline, computer hardware, and networking sectors experienced notable declines, whereas gold stocks defied the overall downward trend, benefiting from a substantial rise in the price of the precious metal.