US stock futures edged higher on Friday as Wall Street assessed President Trump’s nomination of Stephen Miran to the Federal Reserve Board of Governors and took in his new regime of sweeping tariffs.
Futures attached to the Dow Jones Industrial Average (YM=F) rose 0.3%, while those on the benchmark S&P 500 (ES=F) gained 0.4%. Futures tied to the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 (NQ=F) also gained 0.4%.
Gold futures (GC=F) in New York rose above London prices on Friday after the FT reported that the US now plans to put tariffs on gold bar imports.
In corporate earnings premarket, Pinterest (PINS) tumbled on a profit miss, while Block (XYZ) jumped after reporting upbeat guidance. Shares in Expedia (EXPE) soared 17% on Friday before the bell after raising its full-year bookings forecast.
Stocks traded mixed during the day on Thursday as investors assessed a reshaped trade landscape after Trump’s deadline for countries to strike deals on tariffs expired, setting in motion higher duties on dozens of countries worldwide. The indexes trimmed earlier losses following Trump’s nomination of Stephen Miran, current chairman of the Council of Economic Advisors, to serve on the Fed board.
Read more: The latest on Trump’s tariffs
Miran’s nomination must pass Senate approval, and it’s unclear how long that might take with lawmakers on August recess. Trump’s decision on Miran also underscored his search for the next Fed chair. He has talked up the “two Kevins” — current economic adviser Hassett and former Fed governor Warsh — and a report on Thursday said current governor Christopher Waller is seen as the favorite by Trump’s team.
Amid all the jockeying, about 90% of bets are on the current Fed to cut rates in September.
This week has been a bumpy ride for Wall Street. Monday opened with markets recovering from a disappointing slew of job data that stoked fears of broader economic troubles and while upping those rate bets. Corporate earnings and the question of how companies like Apple might weather Trump’s latest tariffs largely drove investor sentiment throughout the week.
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