US Stocks to Resume Slide as Growth Concerns Weigh: Markets Wrap #JapanFinance

(Bloomberg) — Wall Street was set to resume its slide and gold hit new record highs as concerns grew over the US economy, and developments around Gaza and Ukraine dented sentiment.

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Futures for the S&P 500 slipped 0.3% while and Nasdaq 100 contracts dropped 0.5%. Tesla Inc. was among the tech stocks to post losses in premarket trading, looking set to extend this year’s 41% retreat, amid signs that its owner Elon Musk is alienating swathes of the electric carmaker’s customer base. Nvidia Corp. ceded earlier gains as investors waited for Chief Executive Officer Jensen Huang’s keynote speech at the company’s GAI conference.

US stocks are being roiled by fears that the economy is losing steam as a result of President Donald Trump’s trade and labor policies, while authorities have signaled no policy support will be forthcoming to support the market. Housing starts published Tuesday beat estimates, though most recent data has shown signs of softening growth.

In addition, Israel shattered a nearly two-month ceasefire with Hamas by launching airstrikes across Gaza, while Russian President Vladimir Putin was said to be demanding a suspension of all weapons deliveries to Ukraine during a ceasefire proposed by Trump. The events lifted oil prices for a third day, while gold rallied above $3,000 an ounce and gold exchange-traded funds saw a fifth day of inflows.

The tone in Europe was more positive, with the Stoxx 600 index climbing 0.8%. Investors focused on the prospect of hundreds of billions of euros in additional spending by Germany as the country’s parliament prepared to vote on a landmark fiscal bill. The plan, which is expected to boost economic growth across Europe, lifted the euro to a new five-month high. Optimism over Europe was amplified by a positive economic sentiment survey in Germany.

European equities are extending their year-to-date outperformance over Wall Street, with a Bank of America Corp. monthly survey showing investors’ weighting to European stocks at a mid-2021 high. US allocations, meanwhile, have fallen by a record amount in recent weeks.

“US equities are being challenged not only by trade and tariff uncertainty, but even more by uncertainty over the administration’s economic strategy,” Wolf von Rotberg, an equity strategist at Bank J. Safra Sarasin, said, noting Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s dismissal of the recent Wall Street selloff as a “healthy” correction.