NEW YORK — US companies are getting ready to open their books on the second quarter, with investors looking for signs of an impact from President Donald Trump’s trade war launched on April 2.
While earnings growth is expected to decelerate from the first three months of the year, a sharp decline in the dollar could help to offset possible tariff effects.
Analysts are forecasting second-quarter growth of 5.8 percent year-over-year compared with 13.7 percent in the first quarter, LSEG data show. JPMorgan Chase and other big banks are due to report results on July 15, unofficially kicking off the reporting period.
The S&P 500 index has returned to all-time highs, raising questions again on whether profit growth will be enough to support stocks at higher prices.
The index is trading at a multiple of about 22 times forward earnings, compared with a 10-year average price-to-earnings ratio of roughly 18, based on LSEG data.
Trump broadened his global trade war on Tuesday, announcing plans to impose a 50 percent tariff on imported copper, and said long-threatened levies on semiconductors and pharmaceuticals were coming soon.
