Investing.com – U.S. futures slumped on Monday as unexpected declines in Chinese trade numbers added fume to concerns over the world's second largest economy and increased fears of a global growth slowdown.
The S&P 500 futures fell 23 points or 0.9% as of 6:40 AM ET (11:40 GMT) while Dow futures lost 208 points, or 0.87%. Meanwhile tech heavy Nasdaq 100 futures decreased 76 points, or 1.16%.
Chinese exports unexpectedly fell by the most in two years in December, while imports also declined. The numbers increased worry that the U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods are impacting its economy. Separately, data also showed that China had its biggest trade surplus with the U.S. in 2018, which could impact on-going trade negotiations with the White House.
"We believe trade growth next year will slow significantly on huge uncertainty and high base," Citi analysts wrote in a note, predicting China's exports and imports to fall 5% and 6.8% respectively this year.
"Significant uncertainty remains as to whether there could be a 'deal' after March 1," they added.
Earnings season kicks off on Monday, with Citigroup (NYSE:C) expected to release its earnings results at 8:00 AM ET (13:00 GMT). The bank was down 0.4% in premarket trading.
Social media site Snap Inc (NYSE:SNAP). rose 0.8% while media company Gannett Co Inc (NYSE:GCI) surged 18% after news that Digital First Media is expected to make a bid for the news company.
Meanwhile Pacific Gas & Electric Co (NYSE:PCG) slumped 51% after its CEO stepped down and announced that it plans to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Jan. 29. Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) fell 2% while semiconductor company Micron (NASDAQ:MU) decreased 3.3% and Advanced Micro Devices Inc (NASDAQ:AMD) slipped 2.1%.
In commodities, gold futures rose 0.45% to $1,295.35 a troy ounce, while crude oil fell 1.3% to $50.91 a barrel. The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, inched down 0.07% to 95.20.
-Reuters contributed to this report.