US Stocks Likely To Open Higher Amid Trump's Preemptive Rate Cut Call: Earnings Are Starting To Reflect This 'Uncertainty,' Says Expert

U.S. stock futures rebounded on Tuesday following Monday’s selloff. Futures of major benchmark indices were higher in premarket.

President Donald Trump attacked Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell on Monday via a Truth Social post. He called him “Mr. Too Late,” and urged the Fed Chair to cut rates preemptively.

This triggered a market selloff, raising concerns about the central bank’s independence and Trump’s interference with the monetary policy.

The 10-year Treasury bond yielded 4.40%, and the two-year bond was at 3.79%. The CME Group's FedWatch tool’s projections show markets pricing an 89.5% likelihood of the Federal Reserve keeping the current interest rates unchanged in its May meeting.

FuturesChange (+/-)
Dow Jones0.81%
S&P 5001.00%
Nasdaq 1001.01%
Russell 20000.98%

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust SPY and Invesco QQQ Trust ETF QQQ, which track the S&P 500 index and Nasdaq 100 index, respectively, rose in premarket on Tuesday. The SPY was up 1.06% to $519.32, while the QQQ declined 1.11% to $437.92, according to Benzinga Pro data.

Cues From Last Session:

Energy, consumer discretionary, and information technology sectors pulled the U.S. stocks down on Monday.

Shares of Tesla Inc. TSLA fell around 5.8%, while Nvidia Corp. NVDA lost about 4.5% on Monday. Amazon.com Inc. AMZN shares dipped around 5% during the session.

Comerica Inc. CMA fell despite reporting better-than-expected earnings for its first quarter on Monday.

After Monday’s close, the Nasdaq 100 was down 19.86% from its all-time high of 22,222.61 points. The S&P 500 index was 16.09% lower than its previous record of 6,147.43 points, and the Dow Jones was 18.09% below its 52-week high of 45,073.63 points.

IndexPerformance (+/-)Value
Nasdaq Composite-2.55%15,870.90
S&P 500-2.36%5,158.20
Dow Jones-2.48%38,170.41
Russell 2000-2.14%1,840.32

Insights From Analysts:

Senior economist Jeremy Siegel stated in his weekly WisdomTree note that “Markets show signs of tension.”

According to him, tariffs may drive a temporary bump in spending as firms and households rush to front-load purchases, but that demand is borrowed from future quarters. That's not sustainable; it's a warning sign. And once the real price increases filter through to consumer goods, public sentiment will shift quickly.

“Earnings are starting to reflect this uncertainty, though much of Wall Street's consensus remains stale, still anchored in pre-tariff forecasts. CEOs should be updating their models now to reflect multiple trade scenarios, especially those most exposed to China or to consumer imports.”

Siegel also highlighted that Powell will be blamed for any issues arising from Trump’s policy decisions.

“I expect Trump to increasingly blame the ‘too slow Powell' for any downsides that materialize from Trump's policies. Powell may be technically secure in his position, but that doesn't mean he's insulated from blame.”

Lastly, he advised that “For income, I continue to favor dividend-paying equities and international exposure over long-duration bonds.”

Fundstrat’s Tom Lee urged Scott Bessent and Howard Lutnick to deliver swift trade deals, aiming for a positive market “policy shock.”

Echoing Charles Gasparino’s call for the White House to “put points on the board,” which is a sales jargon for quick action during a slump, Lee stated that the market is sending this same message to Bessent, Lutnick, and the Trump’s trade team.

"They got to cut some deals and let the world know, and they have to do so soon because this could get even uglier," Gasparino's post added.

See Also: How to Trade Futures

Upcoming Economic Data

Here’s what investors will keep an eye on Tuesday:

  • Philadelphia Fed President Patrick Harker will speak at 9:30 a.m., Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari will speak at 2:00 p.m., and Richmond Fed President Tom Barkin will speak at 2:30 p.m. ET.

Stocks In Focus:

  • Verizon Communications Inc. VZ rose 0.75% in premarket on Tuesday as it is expected to report earnings before the opening bell. Analysts expect a quarterly earnings of $1.15 per share on revenue of $33.24 billion.
  • 3M Co. MMM was 0.06% below the flatline as Wall Street expects it to report earnings of $1.77 per share on revenue of $5.76 billion after the closing bell.
  • Tesla Inc. TSLA was up 0.66% as it is expected to report earnings after the closing bell. Analysts expect a quarterly earnings of 41 cents per share on revenue of $21.35 billion.
  • AZZ Inc. AZZ declined 4.66% after posting weaker-than-expected sales for its fourth quarter on Monday. The company reiterated its FY26 EPS forecast of $5.50-$6.10 on revenue of $1.625 billion-$1.725 billion.
  • Calix Inc. CALX jumped 13.14% after reporting better-than-expected first-quarter financial results and issuing strong second-quarter guidance. The company also announced an authorized increase to its stock repurchase program.
  • Guidewire Software Inc. GWRE advanced 0.97% after committing $60 million to advance cloud-based insurance innovation and compliance in Japan.
  • S&P Global Inc. SPGI jumped 2%, while Microsoft Corp. MSFT was 1.28% higher after the former launched AI-ready commodities data integrated with MSFT’s 365 Copilot.
  • Atkore Inc. ATKR climbed 5.08% after reporting preliminary second-quarter results, maintaining its full-year outlook.
  • Standard Lithium Ltd. SLI surged 45% after its South West Arkansas Project received special designation as a priority transparency critical mineral project from the Trump Administration.

Commodities, Gold, And Global Equity Markets:

Crude oil futures were trading higher in the early New York session by 1.68% to hover around $63.46 per barrel.

Gold Spot US Dollar advanced 0.92% to hover around $3,455.17 per ounce. Its fresh record high stood at $3,499.92 per ounce. The U.S. Dollar Index spot was higher by 0.07% at the 98.3450 level.

Asian markets were mostly lower on Wednesday, Hong Kong's Hang Seng and India's S&P BSE Sensex index advanced, while Japan's Nikkei 225, China’s CSI 300, Australia's ASX 200, and South Korea's Kospi index ended lower. European markets were mixed in early trade.

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Photo courtesy: Shutterstock

Got Questions? Ask
Which tech stocks could benefit from rate cuts?
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Will dividend-paying equities outperform in this climate?
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Could a positive policy shock boost market sentiment?
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