Wall Street futures climbed on Thursday after a U.S. trade court blocked most of President Donald Trump's proposed tariffs, while AI bellwether Nvidia's stronger-than-expected quarterly revenue added to the upbeat mood.
Market Snapshot
At 8:24 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were up 90 points, or 0.21%, S&P 500 E-minis were up 45.75 points, or 0.78%. Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 269.25 points, or 1.26%.
Pre-Market Movers
NVIDIA , the leading maker of artificial-intelligence chips, was up 5% in premarket trading after posting first-quarter adjusted earnings that topped Wall Street forecasts as revenue soared 69% to $44.1 billion. Data-center revenue jumped 73%. Nvidia said it expects revenue in the current second quarter of $45 billion versus estimates of $45.9 billion. The guidance includes a hit of $8 billion from chip export restrictions to China.
"Countries around the world are recognizing AI as essential infrastructure -- just like electricity and the internet -- and Nvidia stands at the center of this profound transformation," said Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang.
Fellow chip stocks traded higher following Nvidia's strong report. Broadcom gained 3.2%, Advanced Micro Devices was up 3.3%, and U.S.-listed shares of Arm Holdings rose 3.8%.
Apple gained 2.7% after the trade court blocked President Donald Trump's tariffs. The president had threatened a 25% tariff on iPhones sold in the U.S. unless the devices were made domestically.
Salesforce.com was down 0.4% to $275 after the cloud software company reported first-quarter adjusted earnings and revenue that topped analysts' expectations. The company also issued strong second-quarter guidance and raised its fiscal 2026 outlook. Analysts at RBC Capital downgraded Salesforce to Sector Perform from Outperform and reduced their price target on the stock to $275 from $420.
HP Inc. fell 10% after personal computer company reduced its fiscal-year outlook as the broader economic environment puts pressure on costs and demand. HP said it expects adjusted earnings of between $3 and $3.30 a share, below its previous guidance of $3.45 to $3.75 a share. The new outlook also was below analysts' estimates of $3.56 a share. "We think that given the macro uncertainty that has been driven by the new trade situation, there is going to be an impact on demand," Chief Executive Officer Enrique Lores told Barron's.
Tesla Motors gained 2.4% after CEO Elon Musk announced he would be ending his work for the Trump administration -- he led the government's Department of Government Efficiency -- to spend more time on his companies.
Li Auto was down 2% in U.S. trading. The Chinese EV maker reported first-quarter earnings that beat analysts' estimates but issued a tepid revenue forecast.
Synopsys, the semiconductor design software provider, reported fiscal second-quarter adjusted earnings that were better than expected. The company said it anticipates third-quarter adjusted earnings below consensus but raised its fiscal-year adjusted earnings forecast to $15.11 to $15.19 a share.
Meanwhile, the Financial Times reported the Trump administration told U.S. companies that offer software used to design chips, like Synopsys and Cadence Design Systems, to stop selling to China. Synopsys said it hasn't received a notice from the Bureau of Industry and Security, an agency of the Department of Commerce. The stock rose 4.2% in premarket trading. Cadence Design Systems was up 3.9% after tumbling 11% following the publication of the report late Wednesday.
Veeva Systems' first-quarter adjusted profit beat analysts' forecasts and the cloud-solutions company issued second quarter and fiscal-year earnings guidance that was better than consensus. Shares jumped 16%.
Agilent Technologies, the life sciences company, was rising 4.6% after posting better-than-expected fiscal second-quarter earnings and raising its fiscal-year revenue guidance.
Cybersecurity company SentinelOne, Inc was down 14% after first-quarter earnings and revenue met Wall Street estimates but revenue guidance for second quarter was below expectations.
Shares of e.l.f. Beauty Inc. rose 9.8% after the cosmetics company said it wouldn't be providing a fiscal 2026 outlook "due to the wide range of potential outcomes related to tariffs." Fiscal fourth-quarter earnings and revenue beat analysts' forecasts. The company also said it would be acquiring Rhode, a skincare brand founded by model Hailey Bieber, for $1 billion.
C3.ai, Inc. , the artificial-intelligence software company, posted a fiscal fourth-quarter loss that was narrower than expected on sales of $108.7 million, which beat expectations of $107.8 million. The stock was rising 16%.
Market News
Hassett: Judicial Ruling on Tariffs Expected to Be Overturned
White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett stated that the Trump administration has various options regarding tariffs.
He emphasized that the ruling will not impact ongoing trade agreements and expressed confidence in the success of the appeal against the tariff decision. Hassett also mentioned that more trade agreements are expected in the coming weeks, with three agreements ready for U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision as of last week.
US curbs chip design software, chemicals, other shipments to China
The United States has ordered a broad swathe of companies to stop shipping goods to China without a license and revoked licenses already granted to certain suppliers, said three people familiar with the matter.
The new restrictions - which are likely to escalate tensions with Beijing - appear aimed at choke points to prevent China from getting products necessary for key sectors, one of the people said.
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