US Stock Rally Hits 8th Day, Close to Erasing Post-Tariff Rout

by Natalia Kniazhevich of Bloomberg News, 5/1/25

A spate of solid corporate earnings pushed US stocks higher in overnight trading, putting major indexes on track for an eighth straight advance and close to wiping out all of the losses suffered after Donald Trump’s major tariff announcement.

Contracts on the S&P 500 jumped 1.2% as of 8:30 a.m. in New York. The index closed Wednesday 1.8% below levels on April 2, when the president unveiled sweeping tariffs on virtually all of America’s trading partners. Nasdaq 100 futures rallied 1.9%, while Dow Jones Industrial Average contracts added 0.8%.

Microsoft Corp. surged 8.45% in early trading after the software maker’s results topped estimates. Meta Platforms Inc. rose 8.45% after an upbeat report. Apple Inc. will deliver its results after the cash close Thursday. Other major earnings were mixed, with General Motors Corp. up 3.63% after saying tariffs will cause a $5 billion hit. Eli Lilly & Co. sank 5.27% after cutting its forecast.

The latest advance put the S&P 500 on track for a gain of almost 9% over eight sessions as investors grow more optimistic the Trump administration will de-escalate its trade spat with China and reach some semblance of agreements on tariff reductions with the likes of Japan or India.

Trump said that while there was a “very good chance” he would strike a deal with China, “we’re going to make it on our terms and it’s got to be fair.” China’s stance has been more circumspect.

US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said in an interview with Fox News that the US was nearing an announcement of a first tranche of trade deals that would see the White House reduce planned tariffs on trading partners.

“There are four main concerns thte market has had: tariffs, interest rates, geopolitical concerns and earnings. All of them seemed to have calmed down,” said Joe Saluzzi of Themis Trading. “But as we know any of these could pop up quickly and cause the market to selloff again.

Retail traders have poured cash into the stock market in recent weeks, powering the rebound even as professional traders remain more pessimistic. Economists continue to warn that Trump’s trade disputes will cause a recession. The American economy contracted in the first quarter, data showed.

Tech giants’ earnings so far have generally topped estimates, supporting investor sentiment about the S&P 500’s biggest industry group.

“Expectations for the earnings for the four Mag 7 names were very low, giving a big boost of confidence for the market,” said Matt Maley, chief strategist at Miller Tabak + Co.

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Bloomberg News provided this article. For more articles like this please visit bloomberg.com.

US Stock Rally Hits 8th Day, Close to Erasing Post-Tariff Rout

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