07:36 AM EDT, 05/19/2025 (MT Newswires) -- The benchmark US stock measures were trending downwards before the opening bell Monday as investors assessed Moody's downgrade of the world's largest economy's credit ratings.

The S&P 500 declined 1.2%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average decreased 0.8%, and the Nasdaq fell 1.6% in premarket activity. The indexes finished Friday's trading session higher, with the S&P 500 recording gains for the fifth consecutive day.

Moody's on Friday lowered the US government's long-term issuer and senior unsecured ratings to Aa1 from Aaa and changed its outlook to stable from negative. The downgrade reflects the increase in government debt and interest payment ratios over more than a decade "to levels that are significantly higher than similarly rated sovereigns," according to Moody's.

The downgrade comes as the US and China recently agreed to suspend most duties on each other's goods for 90 days. The two countries had been in a trade war since President Donald Trump's announcement of sweeping new tariffs early last month.

The US economy contracted at an annual rate of 0.3% in the March quarter, representing the first drop since the first quarter of 2022, government data showed late April.

US Treasury yields moved higher in premarket action, with the two-year rate inclining 2.1 basis points to 4% and the 10-year rate advancing about 11 basis points to 4.54%. The 30-year rate climbed 12 basis points to more than 5%.

With no major economic reports scheduled for Monday, traders will focus on commentary from key central bank officials for clues on future monetary policy, including Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic, New York Fed President John Williams, and Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari.

Earlier in May, the Federal Reserve left its benchmark lending rate unchanged and warned that upside risks to inflation and unemployment have increased.

Shares of Nvidia ( NVDA ) were down 2.6% pre-bell, while Qualcomm ( QCOM ) declined 1.4%. Palantir Technologies ( PLTR ) slid 3.9%, while Tesla (TSLA) fell 3.6%.

Retail giants Home Depot ( HD ) , TJX (TJX), Lowe's (LOW), Target ( TGT ) , and BJ's Wholesale Club (BJ) are scheduled to report their latest financial results later in the week.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil dropped 1.2% to $61.76 a barrel before the open. Gold gained 1.8% to $3,244 per troy ounce, while bitcoin traded down 1.2% at $103,011.