Market Highlights

Signs Donald Trump is rethinking the most-aggressive elements of his combative stances on trade and the Federal Reserve spurred back-to-back gains in stocks and the dollar, while soothing volatility across asset classes. After a report that the US would be willing to phase in lighter tariffs on Beijing over five years on Wednesday, Trump told reporters that China was “going to do fine” once talks had settled. Meantime, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the president hasn’t offered to take down US tariffs on China on a unilateral basis. The S&P 500 rose 1.7%, though it pared an earlier surge that had swelled to as much 3.4%, as investors tried to gauge how seriously to take pronouncements of flexibility in negotiations with China and other trading partners. The greenback climbed against most major currencies. Long- maturity Treasury yields fell as Trump allayed fears he would fire Fed Chair Jerome Powell. The yen slid as Bessent said America won’t be pursuing specific exchange-rate targets in its talks with Japan. Bitcoin jumped while haven trades like gold pushed lower.

US stocks jumped, wiping out Monday’s plunge, as traders unleashed risky bets that the White House will clinch crucial trade deals with top economic partners. The dollar recovered slightly from Monday’s lows while short-term Treasury yields climbed. The S&P 500 rose 2.5% — notching its best day since April 9 — after a series of reports nurtured Wall Street expectations that tariff-related hostilities are easing as the US makes progress in fleshing out agreements. Traders are now turning to Tesla Inc.’s earnings. The stock rose 4.6% on Tuesday but remains 41% lower this year as controversy over CEO Elon Musk’s role in the federal government has contributed to a global sales slump.

Heavy selling lashed Wall Street anew Monday, with longer-dated Treasuries joining stocks and the dollar in a deepening slump, after President Donald Trump’s rejection of Jerome Powell’s interest- rate policy sowed angst among investors already coping with a global trade war. Trump’s assurances that tariff talks were progressing did little to stop the rout. The S&P 500 and other major US stock indexes tumbled around 2.5% each in light trading, while a gauge of the dollar weakened to a 15-month low. The benchmark 10-year fell with the yield reaching 4.4%. As investors turned away from US securities, haven assets climbed. Gold jumped to another record, above $3,500 an ounce, while the Swiss franc gained around 1% against the dollar.

Warnings from Jerome Powell that trade tensions risk undermining the Federal Reserve’s employment and inflation goals whipped up fresh volatility on Wall Street Wednesday, with stocks resuming sharp declines while haven assets like Treasuries and gold surged. Two days of relative calm were broken as the Fed chief signaled a wait-and-see approach to President Donald Trump’s tariff offensive, pushing back on hopes he would act quickly to soothe investors. Stocks extended losses that began earlier when two big semiconductor companies reported earnings disappointments linked to the global trade war. The S&P 500 ended the session down 2.2%. Technology stocks took the brunt of the beating with the Nasdaq 100 tumbling 3.0% after the White House imposed new restrictions on Nvidia Corp.’s chip exports to China. The yield on 10-year Treasuries fell around fivebasis points to 4.28%.

Stocks whipsawed as President Donald Trump’s fast-evolving tariff war with top trade partners showed little signs of abating, leaving investors unwilling to take on too much risk after a two-day rally. That’s even as results from Wall Street’s financial heavyweights underscored an equity-trading boon and still-healthy consumers and businesses. After climbing almost 1%, the S&P 500 finished lower. In late hours, United Airlines Holdings Inc. stood by its full-year profit outlook, but warned a “recessionary” scenario would erode demand and dramatically lower earnings.

A degree of calm returned to Wall Street, with stocks and bonds notching a twin rally after a tumultuous week in the grip of President Donald Trump’s disruptive trade war. With the White House signaling a tariff reprieve on key consumer electronics, the S&P 500 gained almost 1%. Apple Inc. extended a two-day surge to more than 6% to lead gains in megacaps. Carmakers rallied as Trump floated exceptions for auto parts facing 25% US levies. Treasuries snapped a five-day slide that drove 10-year yields up by the most in over two decades.

Global trade hostilities continued to set Wall Street’s tone at the close of a hectic week. Stocks whipsawed, while longer-dated Treasuries joined the dollar in a broad retreat from American assets. Friday’s price action shows little signs of relief in the volatility that has shaken markets around the world as President Donald Trump’s fast-evolving trade policy leaves investors struggling to figure out their next move. Equities swung between gains and losses as traders watched the latest on the US-China tariff war. Fears that growth will be derailed sent the greenback to a fresh six-month low. US 30-year yields came closer to the 5% mark.

Economic angst enveloped every corner of Wall Street as US-China trade tensions escalate, sparking a slide in stocks, the dollar and oil, with liquidations in US assets pointing to disorder in the financial system. A day after the biggest stock-buying wave in years, assets tied to the economic cycle are sinking again, with President Donald Trump’s mollifying message on trade talks providing little relief. Investors are rushing to game out how the effective freezing of Chinese trade will impact companies and growth. The S&P 500 fell 3.5%. The dollar saw its worst day since 2022. A solid US sale of 30-year Treasuries failed to ignite a rally, but signaled appetite for bonds.

Donald Trump’s pledge to pause tariffs on some trading partners ignited the biggest burst of buying Wall Street has seen since 2008. After narrowly avoiding a bear market, the S&P 500 staged a historic bounce from a selloff that wiped out trillions from global share prices amid the specter of a full-blown trade war that fueled fears of a US recession. The equity benchmark soared 9.5%, the most since the global financial crisis, while the Nasdaq 100 surged 12% as euphoria gripped markets after four days of bruising, high-volume trading. Nearly every stock in major gauges rose.

Wild swings lashed Wall Street for a fourth straight session as back-and-forth trade threats between the US and China knocked down stocks, erasing an earlier rally that was the biggest since 2022. The S&P 500 fell 1.6%, leaving it on the brink of a bear market. Hopes for a quick end to extreme volatility were dashed after a White House official said the US is moving forward with tariffs on China as high as 104% while Premier Li Qiang said his country has ample policy tools to “fully offset” negative external shocks. Long-term Treasury yields soared after a lackluster US sale of notes highlighted cracks in the haven status of government debt