US equity futures were flat ahead of Tuesday's opening bell as traders assessed the potential impact of China's retaliatory tariffs on US goods.

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures slipped 0.2%, S&P 500 futures flatline, and Nasdaq futures were up 0.2%.

On Tuesday, China unveiled tariffs of up to 15% on imports of US coal and liquefied natural gas, as well as 10% duties on crude oil, farm equipment, and certain vehicles in response to fresh US tariffs on Chinese goods.

Oil prices were lower, with front-month global benchmark North Sea Brent crude down 1.7% at $74.71 per barrel and US West Texas Intermediate crude 2.5% lower at $71.30 per barrel.

US factory orders, scheduled for release at 10 am ET, are expected to have dropped by 0.7% in December following a 0.4% decline previously, according to estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Meanwhile, the Labor Department's Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey is expected to show a decline in job openings to 8 million in December from 8.098 million in November.

In other world markets, Japan's Nikkei finished 0.7% higher, Hong Kong's Hang ended 2.8% higher, while the Chinese market was closed for holiday. UK's FTSE 100 slipped 0.1%, and Germany's DAX index gained 0.2% in Europe's early afternoon session.

In equities, shares of Spotify Technology (SPOT) were 8% higher pre-bell after the company reported it swung to Q4 earnings on higher revenue. Quantum BioPharma (QNTM) shares surged 74% after the company said its clinical trial of unbuzzd achieved "statistically significant" results in accelerating alcohol metabolism and lowering blood alcohol concentration.

On the losing side, Merck (MRK) shares fell 8.3% after the drugmaker issued 2025 adjusted earnings and sales guidance that trailed analysts' projections. Estee Lauder (EL) shares dropped 4.4% after reporting see lower fiscal Q2 adjusted profit and sales.