Stocks advanced on Tuesday as Wall Street viewed President Donald Trump's comments and first-day actions around international trade as a bit softer than initially believed.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 537.98 points, or 1.24%, to finish at 44,025.81. The S&P 500 gained 0.88% to end at 6,049.24, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.64% to 19,756.78.3M
climbed more than 4% after earnings came in better than analysts expected. Small-cap stocks also participated in Tuesday's rally, with the Russell 2000 rising about 1.9%.
Several big technology stocks also took a leg up, with Amazon and Nvidia each gaining more than 2%. But a drop of more than 3% in Apple
on the back of two Wall Street downgrades restricted gains for the tech-heavy Nasdaq.
Trump said he was considering 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada on Feb. 1 because of their border policies while signing first-day executive orders in the White House Monday night. He also mentioned China, noting that the U.S. could put tariffs on the country if it doesn't approve a TikTok deal.
Ultimately, Trump issued a broad memorandum directing federal agencies to study what he deems as unfair trade policies with foreign countries. But the president stopped short of authorizing new levies on his first day back in the Oval Office, which investors took as a sign that he may be less ardent about issuing tariffs than previously expected.
"President Trump's Inauguration Day policy announcements on tariffs were more benign than expected," said Alec Phillips, chief U.S. political economist at Goldman Sachs, in a note to clients. "For now, it is a lower priority than we would have expected."
To be sure, Phillips said Trump's language around Canada and Mexico was actually more hawkish than he anticipated. Still, the economist said he was lowering the odds that the U.S. slaps a universal tariff on all imports this year, which can offer confidence to traders originally cautious that a wide-reaching policy would reignite inflation.
Trump said he wasn't ready for universal tariffs yet and he was vague when discussing levies on China.
Outside of trade policy, Wall Street is focused on Trump following through on the pro-business proclamations he made throughout his campaign. Most notably, his calls for looser regulations that helped lift banking stocks following his election win in November. Other components of the so-called Trump trade — including small caps, oil stocks and bitcoin — will likely be hypersensitive to what his administration does.
In his inaugural address, the president labeled his return to the White House as the beginning of a period of growth and success for the country, while largely condemning the Biden Administration. Trump also on Monday declared a national energy emergency to increase fossil fuel production.(Cay) Newsmaker23
Source: CNBC
Stocks in the US closed near the flatline on Friday as investors weighed President Trump's push for higher tariffs on the European Union against strong economic data and corporate earnings. The S&...
The S&P 500 briefly touched an all-time high before hovering flat in the afternoon session, while the Nasdaq dipped 0.2% as investors weighed strong economic data against latest batch of corporate...
The S&P 500 rose 0.2% and the Nasdaq gained 0.4% on Friday (July 18), extending gains after both indexes closed at record highs the previous day. Meanwhile, the Dow Jones Industrial Average hovere...
The STOXX 50 gained 0.4% and the STOXX 600 rose 0.3% on Friday, as investors closely monitored corporate earnings and news, while staying on edge for any signs of progress in trade negotiations betwee...
Australian equities notched a record high as Asia-Pacific markets tracked Wall Street gains on the back of strong U.S. economic data reports and a slew of better-than-expected corporate earnings. Aus...
Former U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to impose tariffs on members of the BRICS group of nations on Friday, warning the alliance would quickly collapse if it ever becomes a significant economic force. "When I heard about this group from...
Stocks in the US closed near the flatline on Friday as investors weighed President Trump's push for higher tariffs on the European Union against strong economic data and corporate earnings. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 finished mostly muted near...
Federal Reserve Governor Chris Waller, an advocate for an immediate interest rate cut, said on Friday he would accept the job as head of the U.S. central bank if asked by President Donald Trump, but so far Trump has not contacted him about it. "In...
The Producer Price Index (PPI) for final demand in the US rose 2.3% annually in June, according to data published by the US Bureau of Labor...
The U.S. central bank will probably need to leave interest rates where they are for a while longer to ensure inflation stays low in the face of...
Unemployment claims fell 7,000 to 221,000 in the week ending July 12, compared with the median estimate of 233,000, according to Labor Department...
President Donald Trump on Tuesday said the U.S. would impose a 19% tariff on goods from Indonesia under a new agreement with the Southeast Asian...