FX.co ★ US Futures Enjoy Some Respite

US equity futures edged higher on Tuesday, modestly paring the steep losses from the previous session as investors continued to weigh the potential disruption from AI-driven advances in software development and automation. Futures on the three major indices were up about 0.2%.

Software stocks saw a tentative rebound after heavy selling at the start of the week, when fears that AI tools could displace traditional software service providers sparked broad-based declines across the sector. Payment companies also remained under pressure amid renewed concerns that AI-enabled disruption could extend to legacy financial infrastructure, accelerating the adoption of stablecoins and reducing transaction volumes in a softer labor market.

At the same time, the administration was preparing a formal order to raise the new Section 122 tariffs to 15%, up from the current rate of 10%.

Finally, Nvidia and other chipmakers traded mostly lower in pre-market action ahead of Nvidia’s earnings release later this week.