Stock-market futures hold ground as oil pulls back, fresh trade-war fears emerge

U.S. stock futures struggled for direction on Thursday, which will mark the end of a largely positive month for equities.

Investor will get updates on consumer spending and home sales, while keeping an eye out for fresh headlines over Italy and trade wars. The Trump White House could announce tariffs on the European Union as soon as Thursday, according to reports.

And oil, which helped drive a rally for stocks Wednesday, was pulling back ahead of U.S. supply data.

What did the main benchmarks do?

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures rose 9 points to 24,678, while S&P 500 index futures  inched up 1.4 points to 2,726. Nasdaq-100 futures added 6.5 points, or 0.1%, to 6,993.75.

A rally for oil prices and an easing of worries about Italian politics drove a rally for stocks on Thursday, with the Dow climbing 306.33 points, or 1.3%, to close at 24,667.78, taking back most of Tuesday’s 392-point drop. The S&P 500 gained 1.3%, also recovering its losses from the prior session. The Nasdaq Composite was up 0.9%.

With one session left to close out May, the Dow is set to mark a 2% monthly rise, the S&P 500 is poised to gain 2.9% and the Nasdaq is set to book a 5.6% increase. An even bigger gain is in store for the Russell 2000 index of small-cap stocks which is set to gain nearly 7%. The index finished at an all-time high on Wednesday, up 1.4%, to 1,646.36.

What’s driving markets?

The latest Italian headlines indicated that President Sergio Mattarella will give populist leaders more time to form a government, a move that could stave off fresh elections, the threat of which triggered an early-week selloff for global markets.

Trade headlines could also swing into focus, with the Trump administration is expected to announce tariffs on European Union steel and aluminum imports as soon as Thursday. The threats, against the EU, Canada and Mexico, announced earlier this year, were suspended to give those countries time to make concessions.

Should those EU tariffs go ahead, the region could announce its own retaliatory measures, with classic American industries such as whiskey and motorcycles potentially under threat.

Which stocks were in focus?

Shares of General Motors Co.  jumped 7% in premarket trade after the car maker said the SoftBank Vision Fund plans to invest $2.25 billion in its self-driving unit.

Retailers were active, with several reporting results. Dollar General Corp.  shares slid 7.4% in premarket after the discount retailer posted disappointing revenue and same-store sales. Meanwhile, Dollar Tree Inc.  shares slid 8.7% after results.

Sears Holdings Corp.  dipped 3% in premarket after the struggling department store chain swung to a fiscal first-quarter loss and revenue fell sharply.

Express Inc.  surged 7% in premarket after the clothing retailer’s earnings beat estimates.

Lululemon Athletica Inc. Ulta Beauty Inc.  and Costco Wholesale Corp.  are due to report after market close.

In potential fallout from trade-war headlines and possible retaliation from the EU, shares of Harley-Davidson Inc.  fell 2.2% in premarket trading. And some U.S. auto makers could be in the spotlight as their European counterparts came under pressure over trade fears, with Daimler AG off 0.8%. Ford Motor Co.  rose 0.4% in premarket.

Which economic reports are on tap?

Check out: MarketWatch’s Economic Calendar

What are other markets doing?

The pan-European Stoxx Europe 600 Index was flat at 386.65, while Italy’s FTSE MIB stock benchmark was recently up 0.7%.

The euro continued its ascent, rising 0.2% to $1.1679, helping to push the ICE U.S. Dollar Index 0.4% lower at 93.813.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury note was steady at 2.87%. Gold futures rose 0.3%, while U.S. oil futures were down 0.8%.

The American Petroleum Institute reported Wednesday that U.S. crude supplies rose by 1 million barrels for the week ended May 25, according to sources. Supply data from the Energy Information Administration will be released Thursday morning.