U.S. stock futures edged higher early Wednesday after the S&P 500 and the 30-stock Dow recorded their largest single-day drops since October 10. Traders are reacting to President Donald Trump’s threat to escalate tariffs over his demand to acquire Greenland.
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Futures on the Nasdaq 100 (NDX), the S&P 500 (SPX), and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) were up 0.33%, 0.34%, and 0.21%, respectively, at 3:20 a.m. EST on January 21.
During Tuesday’s regular trading session, the three major indexes closed sharply lower, with technology stocks leading the selloff. The Dow declined by 1.76%, the S&P 500 fell by 2.06%, and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 2.39%.
After the markets closed, Netflix (NFLX) stock fell more than 5%, despite beating sales and earnings expectations for Q4FY25 and reporting a solid surge in global paid subscribers to 325 million. Moreover, the streaming giant revised its bid for Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) to an all-cash offer, fending off competition from Paramount Skydance (PSKY).
Looking forward, traders are focused on Trump’s speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos today, where he will discuss the Greenland issue. Additionally, economic reports on housing starts, MBA mortgage applications, building permits, and pending home sales will be released today.
On the earnings front, companies reporting today include Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), Halliburton (HAL), and Charles Schwab (SCHW).
Notably, the U.S. 10-year Treasury yield was down, floating near 4.26%. WTI crude oil futures were trending lower, hovering near $59.63 per barrel as of the last check. Additionally, the Gold Spot U.S. dollar price increased to nearly $4,855 per ounce on Wednesday.
Elsewhere, European indexes opened lower today as traders anticipate Trump’s speech in front of world leaders at Davos.
Asia-Pacific Markets Mixed
Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed on January 21 amid escalated geopolitical tensions involving Iran and Greenland.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 0.36%. In China, the Shanghai Composite slipped 0.08%, while the Shenzhen Component gained 0.80%. Meanwhile, Japan’s Nikkei dropped 0.41%, and the Topix declined 0.99%.