Wall Street Indexes Rebound Amid White House's Softening Stance on Tariffs

Barry Adams
24 Mar, 2025
New York City

Wall Street indexes turned up amid yet another flip-flop on tariffs and changing rhetoric on the scope of the import tax. 

The S&P 500 index jumped 1.4%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.6%, on speculation that the White House is likely to temper the next round of tariffs.

Last Friday, Donald Trump said that the next round of tariffs set to be announced in the first week in April may have some "flexibility," and reports suggested that the scope of the import tax is likely to be narrowed more than previously estimated. 

Federal government officials are working on reducing the number of products slapped with tariffs, and not all previously announced countries are likely to be included, according to a report published by The Wall Street Journal. 

Last week, Wall Street indexes extended losses to the fifth week in a row as more evidence of tariff turmoil and government cuts emerged.

Nike and Accenture joined a long list of other companies last week and warned of a sharp slowdown this year.

Tariff uncertainties are forcing businesses to pause additional investments, and consumers are faced with higher bills because of the ever-growing list of items facing import taxes.

The chaos is also affecting the tourism industry as the immigration department ramped up scrutiny of tourists arriving from Europe and Asia. 

European travelers are canceling U.S. vacation plans in large numbers, according to local media in France and Germany, after reports confirmed the arrest of legal tourists from Germany, France, and the U.K. 

On the economic front, the U.S. private sector activities remained in the positive territory, and the growth inched up to a three-month high, but investors worried that slowing consumer spending and resurgent inflation driven by rampant tariffs are likely to negatively impact activities in the months ahead.

This week, U.S. investors are looking forward to the release of the PCE Price Index and the final revision on economic growth in the fourth quarter.

In addition, durable goods orders and international trade data are also on schedule this week.

On the earnings front, investors are looking ahead to financial results from KB Home, Intuitive Machines Inc., Lucid Diagnostics, Chewy, Lululemon, Walgreens Boots Alliance, and Dollar Tree.

 

Commodities, Currencies, Indexes, Yields

The S&P 500 index increased 1.4% to 5,748.61, the Nasdaq Composite edged up 1.8% to 18,107.16, and the Russell 2000 index was up 1.6% to 2,089.36.

The yield on 2-year Treasury notes edged higher to 4.00%, 10-year Treasury notes increased to 4.30%, and 30-year Treasury bonds advanced to 4.63%.

WTI crude oil increased $0.30 to $68.59 a barrel, and natural gas prices edged higher by $0.005 to $3.98 a therm. unit.

Gold decreased by $3.98 to $3,019.19 an ounce, and silver edged up by $0.11 to $33.13.

The dollar index, which weighs the US currency against a basket of foreign currencies, increased by 0.06 to 104.15 and traded at a two-year high.

 

U.S. Stock Movers 

James Hardie Industries agreed to acquire the outdoor products maker, The AZEK Company in a deal valued at $9 billion. 

James Hardie agreed to pay $26.45 in cash and 1.034 of its own shares, totaling $56.88 per share, about a 34% premium to AZEK's closing price on Friday.