(Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures declined on Thursday as investors closely monitored a stopgap government funding bill amid escalating slowdown fears driven by President Donald Trump's chaotic tariff policies.

A funding bill in the U.S. Senate that will keep the government running through September 30 is now in focus, with one day to go before a partial shutdown.

The Republican-controlled House passed the bill earlier in the week. However, Democrats in the Senate called for a one-month extension of existing spending, buying time to complete more comprehensive appropriations bills for the year.

"The proposed alternative is an interim funding plan until 11 April: that would simply postpone a key risk for markets, hence the negative reaction in stock futures," analysts at ING research said in a note.

Steep losses plagued Wall Street earlier in the week as Trump triggered a tit-for-tat trade war with allies that could stoke domestic inflation and trigger an economic slowdown.

Trump's fluctuating policies have rattled investors, with brokerages downgrading their outlook for U.S. equities and multiple companies issuing downbeat forecasts.

American Eagle Outfitters was the latest retailer to forecast annual revenue below expectations, sending shares of the apparel maker down 9.9% in premarket trading.

All three main indexes have seen their post-election gains being wiped out. The benchmark S&P 500 nearly confirmed a 10% correction drop on Tuesday from its record high.

In his latest tariff threat, Trump said he would impose additional penalties on European Union imports if the EU enacts retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods next month.

At 05:44 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were down 19 points, or 0.05%, S&P 500 E-minis were down 6.25 points, or 0.11%, and Nasdaq 100 E-minis were down 39.75 points, or 0.20%.

Signs of cooling consumer inflation provided investors with some reprieve in the previous session. Their focus will now also be on February Producer Price Index data, which is due to be released at 8:30 a.m. ET.

The core figure, including some components that feed into the U.S. Federal Reserve's preferred Personal Consumption Expenditure index, is expected to have increased 3.5% in February, compared with a 3.6% rise in the prior month.

A weekly report on jobless claims is also on tap later in the day.

Investors expect the central bank to leave policy rates unchanged when it meets next week, according to data compiled by LSEG.

Among other stocks, Intel jumped 9.9% after the troubled chipmaker appointed industry veteran Lip-Bu Tan its chief executive officer.

Adobe dropped 4.6% after the Photoshop-maker forecast quarterly revenue in line with estimates, grappling with slower monetization of its artificial-intelligence offerings and tough competition from startups.

SentinelOne lost 13.6% after the cybersecurity company forecast its first-quarter and annual revenue below Street estimates.

Shares of truck- and parts-makers such as Paccar and Cummins fell 5.3% and 2.6%, respectively, after the Environmental Protection Agency launched efforts to undo the previous administration's vehicle-emissions rules.