Stock market today: Wall Street gains ground after shaking off four-week losing streak
Stocks rose in morning trading as Wall Street tries to navigate through uncertainty amid a trade war. The S&P 500 jumped 1.1%. It is coming off its first winning week after a four-week losing streak. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.7% and the Nasdaq composite rose 1.5%. Wall Street remains focused on how tariffs could eventually impact inflation, consumer spending and economic growth. Stocks have been riding waves of hope and worry as tariffs are announced, then either implemented or pulled. Genetics testing company 23andme plunged after it announced over the weekend that it had initiated voluntary bankruptcy proceedings.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.
Wall Street was sharply higher before the opening bell on Monday as last week’s momentum spilled over into the new trading week.
Futures for the S&P 500 surged 1.1%, while futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average picked up 0.9%. Nasdaq futures climbed 1.4%.
Investors turned their attention to corporate news while awaiting the latest developments on U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs, which have spurred major market swings in recent weeks.
Genetics testing company 23andme lost nearly half its value, tumbling 42% in premarket trading after it announced over the weekend that it had initiated voluntary bankruptcy proceedings. The struggling company laid off nearly half of its staff last fall and said it was winding down ongoing clinical trials while evaluating “strategic alternatives” for certain assets.
Shares in The AZEK Co. jumped 20% before the bell Monday after the building materials company announced it was being bought by Australia’s James Hardie Industries in a cash-and-stock deal valued around $8.75 billion.
It’s the second large deal in the sector in less than a week, with QXO Inc. announcing on Thursday that it was buying Beacon Roofing Supply Inc. in a deal worth about $11 billion, including debt.
On tariffs, reports suggested that President Trump may narrow his broad approach to focus on countries that run significant trade surpluses with the U.S., including many countries in Asia.
Markets have been tortured much of this year, swinging wildly at each new tariff announcement.
A trade war between the U.S. and its key trading partners threatens to worsen inflation and hurt both consumers and businesses, which have been warning investors about tariffs, inflation and growing uncertainty about the impact to costs.
Trump has set an April 2 deadline to impose more tariffs on trading partners. It follows a series of other deadlines that have been set for tariffs only to be postponed, sometimes at the last minute.
Chinese Premier Li Qiang struck a conciliatory tone during a meeting with business leaders and U.S. Senator Steve Daines, a strong supporter of President Donald Trump, who is the first member of Congress to visit Beijing since Trump took office in January.
Relations between the countries “have come to an important juncture,” Li said. “Our two sides need to choose dialogue over confrontation, win-win cooperation over zero-sum competition,” he said, adding that China hoped that the U.S. would work together to promote the steady and sustainable development of the China-U.S. relations.
The meeting also involved the leaders of several American businesses, including FedEx Corp. CEO Raj Subramaniam, Boeing Co.’s senior vice president Brendan Nelson, Qualcomm’s CEO Cristiano Amon and Pfizer’s CEO Albert Bourla.
“In recent days, Trump administration officials have signaled that the list of affected countries may not be universal, and existing tariffs — such as those on steel — may not necessarily be cumulative,” Junrong Yeap of IG said in a commentary, adding that , “optimism has surfaced that Trump’s tariff plans may once again be more bark than bite.”
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.4% to 23,787.71, and the Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.2% to 3,370.03.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 edged 0.2% lower to 37,608.49 after a preliminary report on manufacturing showed output falling at its fastest pace in a year, while new orders fell more quickly.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 added 1%, closing at 7,936.90, while Korea’s Kospi lost 0.4% to 2,632.07.
In Europe at midday, European markets were mostly higher. Britain’s FTSE100 was up less than 0.1% while the CAC 40 in Paris added 0.5%.
Germany’s DAX advanced 0.6% after the country’s business activity in private sectors hit a ten-month high, with a smaller-than-expected contraction in manufacturing.