Stock market today: S&P 500, Dow, Nasdaq futures stall with US and China set to reboot trade talks

Image source: Adobe Stock

US stock futures trod water on Monday ahead of renewed US-China trade talks in London, as investors watched for signs either side is willing to dial down tensions and reach a tariff deal. S&P 500 futures were little changed after the broad benchmark edged above 6,000 to notch its highest close since February. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures also fluctuated along the flat line, while contracts on the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 nudged 0.1% lower.

Stocks ended last week on a high note, appearing to shake off the volatility that has plagued markets following President Trump's early-April tariff hikes. Encouraging jobs data helped ease fears of a recession fueled by his policy overhaul. Yahoo Finance reports.

🍏 What to expect from Apple's WWDC event as Wall Street looks for AI gains: Apple's WWDC 2025 kicks off in Cupertino, California, on June 9, offering developers and users a look at the changes coming to the company’s software products throughout the next year. During last year's WWDC, Apple unveiled its Apple Intelligence AI platform. And while the showcase made for some impressive tech demos, the company hasn't been able to deliver on all of its high-flying promises.

There's still little sign of when Apple will begin rolling out its generative AI-powered Siri, and the AI capabilities it has pushed out aren't exactly blowing minds on Wall Street, or anywhere else, for that matter. There's a chance we could get some more insight into Apple's AI plans at this year's show, but don't expect the kind of splashy announcements we saw last year. Yahoo Finance reports.

🤖 Nvidia CEO says the UK is in a ‘Goldilocks’ moment: ‘I’m going to invest here’: Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang poured praise on the U.K. on Monday, promising to boost investment in the country’s artificial intelligence sector with his multitrillion-dollar semiconductor company.

“The U.K. is in a Goldilocks circumstance,” Huang said, speaking on a panel with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Investment Minister Poppy Gustafsson. “You can’t do machine learning without a machine — and so the ability to build these AI supercomputers here in the U.K. will naturally attract more startups.” The Nvidia boss went on to say, “I think it’s just such an incredible, incredible place to invest. I’m going to invest here.” CNBC reports.

📊 Third time lucky? Citi changes its S&P target once more after index hits 6,000: It was by just a fraction, but the S&P 500 closed last week above the 6,000 mark again. Another 2.4% advance and the Wall Street benchmark will be back in record territory.

Unsurprisingly, the stock market’s 20.4% surge off the mid-April low has left a succession of analysts executing some swift U-turns. S&P 500 targets for 2025 from early in the year were slashed several weeks ago and are now being pushed up again. MarkeWatch reports.

📊 Wall Street futures subdued ahead of US-China trade talks: U.S. stock index futures were subdued on Monday as investors looked ahead to talks between the United States and China aimed at mending a trade rift that has rattled financial markets for much of the year.

Top officials from both countries will meet in London to address disagreements around a preliminary agreement struck last month in Geneva that had briefly cooled tensions between the world's largest economies. Reuters reports.

💰 Meta set to throw billions at startup that leads AI data market: Three months after the Chinese artificial intelligence developer DeepSeek upended the tech world with a model that rivaled America’s best, a 28-year-old AI executive named Alexandr Wang came to Capitol Hill to tell policymakers what they needed to do to maintain US dominance.

The US, Wang said at the April hearing, needs to establish a “national AI data reserve,” supply enough power for data centers and avoid an onerous patchwork of state-level rules. Lawmakers welcomed his feedback. “It’s good to see you again here in Washington,” Republican Representative Neal Dunn of Florida said. “You’re becoming a regular up here.” Yahoo Finance reports.

🚗 China extends an olive branch to Western auto giants over rare earth shortage: China appears to have offered U.S. and European auto giants something of a reprieve after industry groups warned of increasing production threats over a rare earth shortage.

China’s Ministry of Commerce on Saturday said it was willing to establish a so-called “green channel” for eligible export license applications to expedite the approval process to European Union firms. A Ministry of Commerce spokesperson said Wang expressed hope that the EU would take “reciprocal steps” and adopt measures to promote compliant trade of high-tech products with China. CNBC reports.

📽️ Warner Bros. Discovery to split into two public companies by next year: Warner Bros. Discovery plans to split into two public companies by next year, the media giant announced Monday, the latest upheaval in the industry as consumers transition from cable to streaming.

WBD will separate into a streaming and studios company, which will include its movie properties and streaming service HBO Max, and a global networks company, which will include CNN, TNT Sports and Discovery, among other businesses. CNBC reports.

👨‍⚕️ Exclusive: UnitedHealth eyes $1 billion deal to exit Latin America as insurer refocuses on US, sources say: UnitedHealth Group is weighing multiple bids for its Latin American operations, according to two people with direct knowledge of the matter, as the insurer buckles down after a series of unprecedented missteps that include the ouster of its CEO and a reported criminal accounting probe.

The largest U.S. health insurer has been trying to exit Latin America since 2022, but the sale of Banmedica has taken on increasing urgency in recent months as the insurer took hits on multiple fronts, according to one of the people. Reuters reports.

➕ Sixth Street-backed Caris Life Sciences targets $5.3 billion valuation in US IPO: Cancer diagnostic firm Caris Life Sciences said on Monday it is targeting a valuation of up to $5.35 billion in its initial public offering in the United States. Irving, Texas-based Caris plans to raise up to $424 million by offering 23.5 million shares priced between $16 and $18 apiece.

The IPO market is heating up as high-profile companies move ahead with their stock market listings in a calmer period after tariff-related volatility stifled deal activity earlier this year. In 2021, Caris raised $830 million at a $7.83 billion valuation in a funding round led by investment firm Sixth Street. Caris will trade on the Nasdaq under the symbol "CAI." Yahoo Finance reports.

(All pricing and percent gains are based on Early Pre-Market from 4:00 AM to 7:00 AM Eastern Time)
Benzinga reports.

1) $KNW: Know Labs

Total gain: +158.33%

2) $SOGP: Sound Group

Total gain: +36.50%

3) $MB: Masterbeef

Total gain: +32.77%

4) $TPST: Tempest Therapeutics

Total gain: +30.24%

5) $UAVS: AgEagle Aerial Systems

Total gain: +16.93%

The closing price of the top three market percent gainers trading near or above $3 on June 6.
Benzinga reports.

*All pricing and percent gains are based on regular market trading hours from 9:30am to 4:00pm Eastern Time

1) $PHAT: Phathom Pharmaceuticals

Total gain: +91.58%

The company announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Phathom's Citizen Petition, filed on December 11, 2024, and communicated its intention to correct the Orange Book to reflect the full 10-year New Chemical Entity exclusivity period for VOQUEZNA tablets, extending through May 3, 2032. Benzinga reports.

2) $EYEN: Eyenovia

Total gain: +56.05%

The stock appeared to be moving on no notable news.

3) $WBUY: Webuy Global

Total gain: +52.6%

The stock appeared to be moving on no notable news.

*Estimate and Actual numbers represent Earnings Per Share in US Dollars

CASY: Casey's General Stores
4Q 2025

After Market Close
Estimate: 1.920
Actual: N/A

CMTL: Comtech Telecom
3Q 2025

After Market Close
Estimate: -0.210
Actual: N/A

SKIL: Skillsoft
1Q 2026

After Market Close
Estimate: -2.650
Actual: N/A

“The greatest investment risk is not the volatility of prices, but the chance that you may lose money by not understanding what you are buying.”

- Philip Fisher

Sourced in: "Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits”, by Philip Fisher, published in 1958.