Dow futures are experiencing a slight decline as we approach the final session of what has been one of the most active weeks for financial markets in 2025. The White House has announced an increase in tariffs affecting numerous countries, coinciding with the expiration of President Donald Trump’s highly awaited trade deadline. Tech giants Amazon.com and Apple present their most recent returns, with their artificial intelligence strategies taking center stage for investors. Meanwhile, the nonfarm payrolls report for July is anticipated, as a labor market that has recently demonstrated resilience begins to exhibit some indications of cooling.

Dow futures were positioned lower on Friday, as investors prepared for the concluding day of a significant week marked by a range of factors including international trade developments, central bank decisions, substantial earnings from major technology firms, and important economic data releases. The Dow futures contract experienced a decline of 319 points, representing a decrease of 0.7%. Similarly, S&P 500 futures fell by 41 points, or 0.6%, while Nasdaq 100 futures saw a reduction of 158 points, also reflecting a 0.7% drop. The main averages on Wall Street declined in the previous session, pulling back from earlier gains, as concerns regarding the ramifications of Friday’s trade deadline overshadowed impressive quarterly results from tech giants Meta Platforms and Microsoft. Shares of Facebook-owner Meta soared by more than 11%, while software titan Microsoft’s stock price climbed, making it the second publicly-traded company after Nvidia to surpass $4 trillion in market value. The advancements observed are fundamentally supported by the optimism surrounding these firms’ intentions to invest tens of billions of dollars in AI, suggesting that these expenditures are starting to yield positive results. In other developments, design software company Figma experienced a remarkable market debut. The firm’s shares surged significantly, resulting in a market capitalization of approximately $50 billion, which may facilitate the emergence of additional high-growth listings.

Following an extended period of negotiations and postponements, the moment has arrived for the implementation of President Trump’s extensive “reciprocal” tariffs. On Thursday night, Trump signed an executive order that lifted tariffs by as much as 50% on numerous countries, intensifying his efforts to disrupt a global trading system he deems unfair to U.S. interests. The levies are scheduled to take effect at 12:01 am on August 7. Major industrialized economies, including the European Union, Japan, and South Korea, will encounter duties of 15%, whereas other nations that maintain a trade surplus with the U.S. will be subjected to tariffs of 10%. Even higher tariffs are poised to be imposed on other nations, including 50% levies on Brazil. Trump raised tariffs on Canadian goods to 35% for those that do not adhere to the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, a trade deal established during his initial term in office. In the interim, Trump and his Mexican counterpart, Claudia Sheinbaum, announced that Mexico has been afforded an additional 90-day extension to negotiate an agreement with Washington.

Amazon reported second-quarter earnings and revenue that exceeded expectations, supported by robust e-commerce performance and advertising revenue. However, shares declined by over 6% in after-hours trading due to operating margins in the company’s crucial cloud computing segment not meeting investor expectations. The company disclosed earnings per share of $1.68, surpassing the average analyst projection of $1.32. Revenue at the most recent addition to the “Magnificent Seven” cohort of mega-cap tech firms increased by 11% year-over-year, reaching $167.7 billion, surpassing projections of $162.05 billion. Amazon Web Services, its crucial cloud computing division, delivered sales of $30.9 billion, up 17.5% from a year earlier. Although it exceeds consensus expectations for 17% growth, there are lingering concerns that AWS may have ceded more market share than anticipated, according to Gene Munster, Managing Partner of Deepwater Asset Management. Analysts at Vital Knowledge noted that operating margins at AWS for the quarter stood at 32.9%, falling short of expectations. Free cash flow approached break-even, falling short of consensus forecasts of $8.2 billion, primarily attributable to significant capital expenditures. Similar to its counterparts in the Big Tech sector, Amazon has focused on substantial investments in artificial intelligence as it seeks to leverage and capitalize on this emerging technology.

Apple disclosed its third-quarter results on Thursday, surpassing Wall Street projections, fueled by stronger-than-anticipated iPhone sales due to a resurgence in demand from China, alongside services revenue reaching a record high. Shares of Apple rose more than 2% in recent extended hours trading, even as analysts noted muted tailwinds from AI. Some analysts contend that Apple may be lagging in the AI arms race, which could undermine the future attractiveness of its products in comparison to AI-enhanced competitors. For the quarter concluding on June 28, Apple disclosed earnings of $1.57 per share alongside revenue amounting to $94.04 billion. Analysts surveyed by Investing.com projected earnings per share of $1.43 alongside revenue of $89.53 billion. Sales of Apple’s flagship iPhone, which constitutes nearly half of total revenue, increased by 13% to $44.58 billion, surpassing estimates of $40.22 billion. “The installed base of active devices has achieved a new all-time high across all product categories and geographic segments,” the company stated. Demand in China, where Apple has faced increasing domestic competition, has also shown signs of recovery after experiencing a decline on an annualized basis in the March quarter. Apple’s sales in Greater China rose to $15.37 billion, up from $14.73 billion a year prior, exceeding projections of $15.19 billion. While analysts at Vital Knowledge characterized the returns as “solid,” they highlighted that the implications of Trump’s tariffs on Apple’s efficient international supply chain remain a significant uncertainty for the business. An imminent ruling in a U.S. court regarding Google’s ability to pay for search exclusivity on Apple devices presents another potential headwind, they noted. “If it cannot, that could signify a substantial impact on Apple’s services revenue and total operating income,” the analysts noted.

On Friday, economists will have the opportunity to analyze the latest measure of the American labor market, as the Labor Department releases its crucial monthly jobs report for July. The U.S. is projected to have added 106,000 jobs last month, a decrease from 147,000 in June, while the unemployment rate is anticipated to rise marginally to 4.2% from 4.1%. This week has revealed indications of a labor landscape characterized by subdued hiring and a decrease in employees departing their positions in search of new opportunities—trends that may suggest a moderation in what has been a robust job market recently. This scenario may lead the Federal Reserve to consider reducing interest rates to stimulate spending and investment. However, the Federal Reserve is concurrently addressing inflation that remains above its established long-term target of 2%, while preliminary indicators seem to imply that the expenses associated with Trump’s tariffs are beginning to influence the prices of specific trade-sensitive goods. Policymakers may be inclined to maintain higher interest rates to avert a significant rise in inflation. On Wednesday, the central bank opted to maintain its borrowing costs for the fifth consecutive meeting, despite significant pressure from Trump to expedite rate cuts aimed at stimulating economic growth. Although the decision was largely expected, the actions of the Fed at its forthcoming meeting in September remain uncertain.