Nasdaq 100 Falls 1% in Countdown to Tech Earnings: Markets Wrap

(Bloomberg) — Wall Street investors bracing for a deluge of corporate earnings and key economic data sent stocks falling on Monday as they awaited more insights on the impacts of President Donald Trump’s trade war.

The S&P 500 halted a four-day advance, led by losses in big tech. The Nasdaq 100 dropped 1%. Investors obsessed with every twist of tariff developments will wade through a raft of results from giants like Microsoft Corp. and Apple Inc. From jobs to inflation, the pace of economic reports will be just as busy. Bonds were little changed and the dollar fell.

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With a jittery April near a close, several market pros see little reason to think volatility is in the rearview mirror. If equities are going to be able to extend last week’s rally, investors may need to see the White House follow through on the “dovish pivot” toward trade with China, according to Chris Larkin at E*Trade from Morgan Stanley.

“We expect a choppy market in the intermediate term that could be rangebound until clarity is achieved on what effect tariffs have on corporate earnings, which as of now remains very unclear,” said Brian Buetel at UBS Wealth Management.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC that “all aspects” of the US government are in contact with China but that it’s up to Beijing to take the first step in de-escalating the tariff fight with the US due to the imbalance of trade between the two nations.

“Underneath the surface, key risks persist — trade tensions, recession worries, and monetary policy uncertainties are very much alive,” said Fawad Razaqzada at City Index and Forex.com. “The ongoing US-China trade talks remain a pivotal factor.”

Among corporate highlights, International Business Machines Corp. plans to invest $150 billion in the US over the next five years, joining a cohort of companies that have announced spending commitments following Trump’s election and tariff threats. Alphabet Inc. is offering about $4 billion of US high-grade corporate bonds on Monday.

Morgan Stanley’s Michael Wilson says the weak dollar will support US corporate earnings, helping the American stock market to outperform the rest of the world.

Yet Wilson expects the S&P 500 to remain in the 5,000 to 5,500 range. A more substantial increase would require a tariff deal with China, clear rebound in earnings estimates and the possibility of easier monetary policy, he wrote.

US stocks are likely to remain rangebound, with attention veering between positive trade headlines and worries about a recession, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co. strategists, who recommend selling any rebounds.

The team including Fabio Bassi and Dubravko Lakos-Bujas sees the S&P 500 trading between 5,200 and 5,800 points. The gauge would only hit that higher end of the range with broad trade agreements, a decline in volatility and improving sentiment, they noted.

Some of the main moves in markets:

Stocks

• The S&P 500 fell 0.6% as of 11:27 a.m. New York time
• The Nasdaq 100 fell 1.1%
• The Dow Jones Industrial Average was little changed
• The Stoxx Europe 600 rose 0.5%
• The MSCI World Index fell 0.2%
• Bloomberg Magnificent 7 Total Return Index fell 1.8%
• The Russell 2000 Index fell 0.2%

Currencies

• The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.2%
• The euro was little changed at $1.1376
• The British pound rose 0.5% to $1.3384
• The Japanese yen rose 0.6% to 142.74 per dollar

Cryptocurrencies

• Bitcoin fell 0.5% to $93,842.98
• Ether fell 2.2% to $1,762.95

Bonds

• The yield on 10-year Treasuries was little changed at 4.24%
• Germany’s 10-year yield advanced four basis points to 2.50%
• Britain’s 10-year yield advanced two basis points to 4.50%

Commodities

• West Texas Intermediate crude fell 1.9% to $61.85 a barrel
• Spot gold rose 0.3% to $3,330.29 an ounce

–With assistance from Cecile Gutscher and Anand Krishnamoorthy.

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