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Futures up: Dow 0.23%, S&P 500 0.31%, Nasdaq 0.43%

March 3 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures inched up

on Monday, ahead of a crucial deadline on tariffs on top trade

partners and a data-packed week that could throw light on the

health of the world's largest economy.

At 05:50 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis were up 101 points,

or 0.23%, U.S. S&P 500 E-minis were up 19 points, or

0.31% and Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 89 points, or

0.43%.

Recent reports on softening consumer demand have spurred

fears of a slowdown as markets prepare for higher inflation once

Donald Trump administration's tariff policies take full effect.

Wall Street's three main indexes logged their first monthly

decline of 2025 in February, with the Nasdaq coming close to a

10% drop from its all-time high.

Expectations of sticky inflation had led to the Federal

Reserve leaving interest rates on hold since December, but this

week's economic data, particularly Friday's non-farm payrolls

report, could change their outlook.

Investor focus will be on the Institute for Supply

Management's (ISM) survey, due at 10 a.m. ET. Economists polled

by Reuters estimate manufacturing activity to stay in expansion

territory of 50.8. Services activity data along with at least

three employment reports are also lined up through the week.

Traders have dialed up bets on the Fed's 2025 monetary

policy easing cycle, with futures pointing to at least two 25

basis points worth of interest rate cuts by December, according

to data compiled by LSEG.

St. Louis Fed President Alberto Musalem, a Federal Open

Market Committee voting member, is scheduled to speak later in

the day, while Fed Chair Jerome Powell's remarks are due on

Friday.

Investors are uncertain about tariffs, ahead of Trump's

Tuesday deadline, that will end the one-month pause on the 25%

duties he imposed on imports from Canada and Mexico.

There are suggestions that the President could soften the

blow on the North American economies if they agree to also

impose duties on Chinese goods.

Trump has also threatened that an extra 10% duty on imports

from China will also take effect on Tuesday, against which a

report said Beijing is likely to retaliate with counter-measures

on agricultural imports from the U.S.

U.S-listed shares of Chinese companies such as Nio

fell 3.6%, JD.com lost 2.3% in premarket trading.

Still, analysts say that April 1 is the day when the new

administration's trade policy would be fully revealed.

Crypto stocks such as Microstrategy ( MSTR ) jumped 12.3%,

Coinbase rose 9.4% tracking bitcoin that surged 9.8%

after Trump announced a proposed reserve of digital assets,

ahead of Friday's White House Crypto Summit.

Defense stocks such as RTX added 2.1%, Lockheed

Martin ( LMT ) climbed 1.1% after the U.S. approved a $3 billion

arms deal to Israel.