Wall Street surges to one of its best days since WWII after Trump pauses many of his tariffs
U.S. stocks soared to one of their best days in history on a euphoric Wall Street Wednesday after President Donald Trump said he would back off on most of his tariffs temporarily, as investors had so desperately hoped he would.
The S&P 500 surged 9.5%, an amount that would count as a good year for the market. It had been sinking earlier in the day on worries that Trump바카라 게임 웹사이트s trade war could drag the global economy into a recession. But then came the that investors worldwide had been waiting and wishing for.
바카라 게임 웹사이트I have authorized a 90 day PAUSE,바카라 게임 웹사이트 Trump said, after recognizing the more than 75 countries that he said have been negotiating on trade and had not retaliated against his latest increases in tariffs.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent later told reporters that Trump was pausing his so-called 바카라 게임 웹사이트reciprocal바카라 게임 웹사이트 tariffs on most of the country바카라 게임 웹사이트s biggest trading partners, but maintaining his 10% tariff on nearly all global imports.
China was a huge exception, though, with Trump saying tariffs are going up to 125% against its products. That raises the possibility of more swings ahead that could stun financial markets. The trade war is not over, and an escalating battle between the world바카라 게임 웹사이트s two largest economies can create plenty of damage. U.S. stocks are also still below where they were just a week ago, when Trump announced worldwide tariffs in what he called 바카라 게임 웹사이트Liberation Day.바카라 게임 웹사이트
But on Wednesday, at least, the focus on Wall Street was on the positive. The Dow Jones Industrial Average shot to a gain of 2,962 points, or 7.9%. The Nasdaq composite leaped 12.2%. The S&P 500 had its third-best day since World War II.
The relief came after doubts had crept in about whether Trump cared about the financial pain the U.S. stock market was taking because of his tariffs. The S&P 500, the index that sits at the center of many 401(k) accounts, came into the day nearly 19% below its record set less than two months ago.
That surprised many professional investors, who had long thought that a president who used to crow about records for the Dow under his watch would pull back on policies if they sent markets reeling.
Wednesday바카라 게임 웹사이트s rally pulled the S&P 500 index away from the edge of what바카라 게임 웹사이트s called a 바카라 게임 웹사이트bear market.바카라 게임 웹사이트 That바카라 게임 웹사이트s what professionals call it when a run-of-the-mill drop of 10% for U.S. stocks, which happens every year or so, graduates into a more vicious fall of 20%. The index is now down 11.2% from its record.
Wall Street also got a boost from a relatively smooth auction of U.S. Treasurys in the bond market Wednesday. Earlier jumps in Treasury yields had rattled the market, indicating increasing levels of stress. Trump himself said Wednesday that he had been watching the bond market 바카라 게임 웹사이트getting a little queasy.바카라 게임 웹사이트
Analysts say several reasons could be behind the rise in yields, including hedge funds and other investors having to sell their Treasury bonds to raise cash in order to make up for losses in the stock market. Investors outside the United States may also be selling their U.S. Treasurys because of the trade war. Such actions would push down prices for Treasurys, which in turn would push up their yields.
Regardless of the reasons behind it, higher yields on Treasurys add pressure on the stock market and push upward on rates for mortgages and other loans for U.S. households and businesses.
The moves are particularly notable because U.S. Treasury yields have historically dropped 바카라 게임 웹사이트 not risen 바카라 게임 웹사이트 during scary times for the market because the bonds are usually seen as some of the safest possible investments. This week바카라 게임 웹사이트s sharp rise had brought the yield on the 10-year Treasury back to where it was in late February.
After approaching 4.50% in the morning, the 10-year yield pulled back to 4.34% following Trump바카라 게임 웹사이트s pause and the Treasury바카라 게임 웹사이트s auction. That바카라 게임 웹사이트s still up from 4.26% late Tuesday and from just 4.01% at the end of last week.
Of course, the trade war is not over. Bessent and Trump clearly showed their anger at China, which has been ratcheting up its own tariffs on U.S. goods and announcing other countermeasures with each move Trump has made.
China earlier said it would raise tariffs on U.S. goods to 84% on Thursday. 바카라 게임 웹사이트If the U.S. insists on further escalating its economic and trade restrictions, China has the firm will and abundant means to take necessary countermeasures and fight to the end바카라 게임 웹사이트 the Ministry of Commerce said.
Later the U.S. Treasury secretary said in a message to countries worldwide, but perhaps most directly aimed at China, 바카라 게임 웹사이트Do not retaliate, and you will be rewarded.바카라 게임 웹사이트
On Wall Street, the gains were widespread across the U.S. stock market, and 98% of the stocks in the S&P 500 index rallied.
Leading the way were airlines and other stocks that need customers feeling confident enough to travel for work or for vacation.
Delta Air Lines soared 23.4%. Earlier in the day, it had as the trade war scrambles expectations for business and household spending and depresses bookings across the travel sector.
All told, the S&P 500 rocketed higher by 474.13 points to 5,456.90. The Dow Jones Industrial gained 2,962.86 to 40,608.45, and the Nasdaq composite surged 1,857.06 to 17,124.97.
In stock markets abroad, indexes tumbled across most of Europe and much of Asia after they closed before Trump바카라 게임 웹사이트s announcement.
London바카라 게임 웹사이트s FTSE 100 dropped 2.9%, Tokyo바카라 게임 웹사이트s Nikkei 225 sank 3.9% and the CAC 40 fell 3.3% in Paris. Chinese stocks were an outlier, and indexes rose 0.7% in Hong Kong and 1.3% in Shanghai.
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AP Business Writers Matt Ott and Elaine Kurtenbach contributed.