Jan 22 (Reuters) – U.S. stock index futures rose on Thursday, signaling fresh buying momentum on Wall Street after President Donald Trump backed down from threats to impose tariffs against European countries, easing concerns about a new global trade war.
The main U.S. indexes rebounded on Wednesday, with the benchmark S&P 500 posting its biggest one-day percentage gain in two months, after Trump stepped back from imposing tariffs as leverage to seize Greenland, suggesting instead that a deal was in sight to end a dispute over the Danish territory.
Trump’s trade threats had sent shivers through global markets on Tuesday, though buyers quickly returned to stock markets following his U-turn.
The CBOE Volatility Index, also known as Wall Street’s fear gauge, slid further from a two-month peak touched on Tuesday.
At 5:59 a.m. ET, S&P 500 e-minis were up 41.75 points, or 0.60%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis climbed 219.5 points, or 0.87%. Dow e-minis added 201 points, or 0.41%.
Investors will focus on a slew of U.S. economic data releases later in the day, including the final reading of third-quarter GDP, weekly jobless claims and the personal consumption expenditures index – the Federal Reserve’s favored inflation gauge.
The U.S. central bank is widely seen holding interest rates next week on lingering inflation and signs of a resilient economy. Trump on Wednesday renewed his criticism of Fed Chair Jerome Powell for not lowering rates fast enough and said an announcement on the next Fed chair is coming soon.
The fourth-quarter earnings season remains in focus, with companies such as GE Aerospace, Procter & Gamble and Abbott Labs set to report later in the day.
Chipmaker Intel, whose shares have soared 47% since the start of the year, is scheduled to report results after markets close on Thursday.
U.S.-listed shares of Alibaba Holdings rose 5% in premarket trading after Bloomberg News reported the Chinese e-commerce firm is preparing to list its chipmaking arm, T-Head.
Venture Global jumped 10.6% after the LNG firm said an arbitration tribunal had ruled in its favor in a dispute with Spain’s Repsol.
(Reporting by Sruthi Shankar in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)
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