U.S. stocks were set to open sharply lower Monday as markets brace for a crucial stretch of earnings reports from some of the market’s most heavily weighted names — including Tesla (TSLA+1.13%), Google parent Alphabet (GOOGL+1.23%), IBM (IBM+1.52%), Boeing (BA+2.21%), and Procter & Gamble (PG+1.60%).
The S&P 500 was down 1.3% premarket, while Nasdaq futures slid 1.5%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was off more than 400 points, or 1%. Gold shot past $3,400 per ounce for the first time. Volatility is spiking, with the VIX up more than 8%, reflecting investors’ sense of intensifying geopolitical risk.
Nvidia (NVDA+0.54%) stock was down about 4% premarket after reports that Huawei will begin mass shipments of a new AI chip to Chinese customers as soon as next month. The move highlights Beijing’s push to reduce reliance on U.S. technology — and deepens investor anxiety around Nvidia’s access to the massive China market after the White House imposed new rules on the company’s chip sales.
It’s been a whiplash month for equities, with intraday swings as large as 5% and every major index well off its pre-“Liberation Day” levels. The coming week may determine whether that trend deepens — or finally breaks.
Earnings from tech giants including Tesla and Google will be scrutinized not just for growth but for signs of stability in a market that’s grown more erratic by the day. With more than 100 companies reporting this week, the next few days could set the tone for the rest of the second quarter.
“The Street does not care anymore about words and ‘deal progress’ comments,” Wedbush analysts said in a Sunday note. “The economic damage done from this Trump back and forth tariff plan has likely pushed the economy towards a recession path already as cap ex [has been] halted across the board, hiring plans paused, price increase worries, and supply chain shock/chaos has sparked a level of uncertainty in the US not seen since Covid days.”
The difference, Wedbush noted, is that this time it’s “self-inflicted,” concluding bluntly: “We are heading into a tech earnings season that we expect minimal/no guidance as C-level executives are playing darts blindfolded with gauging the growth and spending plans of their customers.”
One bright spot? Netflix (NFLX+2.09%). In the first quarter of 2025, the company posted an almost-$3-billion profit on $10.54 billion in revenue — with an eye-popping 31.7% operating margin. Wall Street seems especially approving of Netflix’s ad-supported $7.99 monthly membership, which appears less vulnerable to recession-driven household savings measures.
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