U.S. stock futures surged on Wednesday following President Trump's statement that he would not fire Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. According to the Associated Press Business Writers on Wednesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures jumped 1.9%, S&P 500 futures rose 2.6%, and Nasdaq futures climbed 3%. This news provided relief to markets concerned about potential instability at the Fed.
Trump's comments, made on Tuesday, eased concerns after he expressed dissatisfaction with the Fed's interest rate policy. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent's remarks about an expected "de-escalation" in the U.S.-China trade war also boosted market sentiment. However, analysts caution that market direction remains heavily influenced by Trump's trade-related decisions.
In company news, Tesla shares rose 7% pre-market after Elon Musk pledged to focus more on the company. Big technology stocks also saw gains, with Nvidia up 5.5%, Apple rising 3%, and Meta gaining 4.5%. European markets also reacted positively, with France's CAC 40 up 2.4% and Germany's DAX rising 2.6%.
Asian markets closed higher, with Japan's Nikkei 225 gaining 1.9% and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 surging 1.3%. In energy trading, U.S. crude oil added 55 cents to $64.22 a barrel. The U.S. dollar weakened to 141.99 Japanese yen, while the euro rose to $1.1392.