S&P futures had plunged as much as 5.5% around the time Europe opened but the stock selling stampede abated as traders boosted expectations for Fed rate cuts amid economic fears just days ahead of Trump's deadline for reciprocal tariffs to take effect. The rout accelerated late on Sunday after the president struck a defiant tone and repeatedly defended the tariff barrage unveiled last week. His remarks underscored those of his top economic officials, who on Sunday doubled down on Trump's plan, dampening risk sentiment further. Some comments this morning by Jamie Dimon urging a quick resolution to the trade war, helped calm sentiment. As of 8:00am S&P futures are down -2.6% with Nasdaq futures dropping around 3.0% but there is zero liquidity so it's pretty much impossible to ascribe a snapshot to what is happening. The yield curve is bull steepening, with 5x rate cuts now fully priced in by YE25. USD is flat and commodities are being sold with Energy complex the biggest laggard, though oil is also well off session lows. The VIX is rising again, and is around 50, while oil falls below $60/barrel for the first time since April 2021 on fears that demand will collapse. Ten- and two-year Treasury yields are falling with traders pricing in five Fed cuts this year and a possible emergency move. This is a light macro data week with CPI on Thurs the highlight as earnings kick off later this week, although nobody will care about anything besides tariffs and trade war.

For a sense of how much panic there was around the European open, look no further than the VIX which briefly topped 60.

Pre-market, Tesla shares slumped in premarket trading after one of the stock's biggest bulls — Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives — slashed his price target by more than 40%, citing Trump's trade policies and a brand crisis created by Elon Musk. The rest of the Mag7/TMT are also underperforming so we may see traditional defensive play outperform today (Microsoft -1.3%, Meta -2.6%, Alphabet -2.1%, Apple -3.3%, Amazon -2.2%, Nvidia -3.4%, Tesla -5.7%). Here are some other movers:

US-listed Chinese stocks extend losses over the escalating trade war between the US and China. Alibaba (BABA) -6.4%, JD.com (JD) -6%.

Apple Inc. (AAPL) slips 3.3% as Wedbush cuts the price target to $250 from $325, citing the Trump administration's tariff policies.

Dollar Tree (DLTR) inches higher, up about 1%, after Citi turned bullish, anticipating that the higher across-the-board tariffs will be positive for the discount retailer.