Investing.com-- U.S. stock index futures moved in a tight range on Thursday evening after Treasury yields paused a recent run-up, although investors remained on edge over stretched U.S. debt levels and a sweeping tax cut bill.
Futures retreated following a choppy session on Wall Street, where gains in technology shares were largely offset by broad-based losses. Still, Wall Street indexes did end off their intraday lows, tracking a dip in Treasury yields after President Donald Trump’s tax cut bill was approved by the House of Representatives.
Markets did take some relief from a Supreme Court ruling that the Federal Reserve was unique, dismissing the possibility of Trump firing Chair Jerome Powell, who the president has repeatedly badgered to cut interest rates.
S&P 500 Futures steadied at 5,859.25 points, while Nasdaq 100 Futures was flat at 21,177.50 points by 19:52 ET (23:52 GMT). Dow Jones Futures steadied at 41,947.0 points.
Debt concerns persist as tax cut bill clears house
While Treasury yields did fall from recent peaks, investors remained on edge over stretched U.S. debt levels, especially after Moody’s had last week cut the U.S. sovereign rating over debt concerns.
Treasury yields had shot up this week as investors dumped government bonds, while an auction of 20-year bills also saw weak demand.
The House of Representatives voted to narrowly approve a sweeping tax cut and spending bill backed by Trump on Thursday, sparking more uncertainty over U.S. debt. The Congressional Budget Office, a non-partisan analytics agency, said that the bill in its current form will add about $3.8 trillion to the federal government’s $36.2 trillion debt pile over the next decade.
The legislature now heads to the Senate for more discussions and an eventual vote.
The bill passes several of Trump’s campaign promises, including a removal of income tax on tips, as well as approving spending for Trump’s immigration crackdown.
Wall St ends muted, headed for negative week
Wall Street indexes ended mostly flat on Thursday as investors grappled with a host of uncertainties over the U.S. economy.
In addition to debt concerns, uncertainty over Chinese trade relations also crept back into markets, after Beijing warned that recent, stricter U.S. chip controls undermined a trade truce between the two countries.
Still, flash purchasing managers index data read stronger than expected for May, suggesting that business activity remained resilient despite increased headwinds from trade tariffs and weak consumer sentiment.
The S&P 500 fell slightly to 5,842.0 points on Thursday, while the NASDAQ Composite rose 0.3% to 18,925.74 points. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended flat at 41,859.09 points.
All three indexes were trading down between 1.5% and 2% for the week.