Big shifts in global government policy are stirring markets early Thursday.
In the U.S., the dollar weakened further and stock futures dropped, suggesting indexes could reverse the rally that followed a partial rollback of tariffs Wednesday. Investors are unnerved by the day-to-day changes in the White House’s tariff policy, with delays, exceptions and extensions all on the table.
Overseas, investors dumped government bonds, as Germany’s plans for a huge increase in spending rippled through markets. German bond yields extended Wednesday’s historic surge, while Japanese long-term yields hit their highest levels since 2009.
In other recent market action:
S&P 500 and Dow industrials futures fell roughly 1%, while Nasdaq-100 futures dropped more.
Global markets were mixed. The Stoxx Europe 600 edged lower. Asian indexes largely rose, with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng up 3.3%, driven by gains in Chinese tech stocks.
U.S. Treasury yields ticked higher, but less than yields in Europe and Japan.
Bitcoin rose to around $91,000.
The European Central Bank is expected to cut interest rates again in an announcement due at 8:15 a.m. ET.
