U.S. stock futures declined on Friday as global economic concerns intensified following China's sharpest export drop in three years, with markets bracing for the February nonfarm payrolls report.
China's February exports fell 20.7% year-on-year, the steepest decline since 2019, according to Reuters data, fueling fears of a global trade recession. The data contrasted with a 4.8% decline forecast by economists, signaling deeper economic strain in the world's second-largest economy.
European Central Bank's revised growth forecasts and new stimulus measures compounded investor anxiety, pushing U.S. indices to their fourth consecutive day of losses. The S&P 500 closed below its 200-day moving average for the first time in a month, marking a key technical milestone.
A U.S. diplomatic source reported no imminent progress in Sino-U.S. trade talks, with neither side setting a date for a summit to address tariffs. This added to market jitters, particularly for companies reliant on Chinese demand.
Shares of Boeing and Caterpillar fell 0.9% and 0.6% respectively, while chipmakers Nvidia, AMD, and Micron each dropped 1% amid concerns over reduced demand. The FAANG group also declined, with Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix, and Alphabet each slipping 0.7%-0.9%.
Investors now await the Labor Department's nonfarm payrolls report, expected to show February job growth slowing to 180,000 from 304,000 in January. Early futures indicated further declines, with Dow e-minis down 0.44% and Nasdaq 100 e-minis off 0.53%.
Despite the downturn, Costco Wholesale surged 4.7% after exceeding earnings expectations, while housing permits data showed a slight decline to 1.289 million units in January.
