The New York Stock Exchange showed strength amid expectations that the United States would smoothly continue negotiations with major trading partners excluding China.
On the 29th (Eastern Time), the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 300.03 points (0.75%) to close at 40,527.62 on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). The Standard & Poor's (S&P) 500 Index increased by 32.08 points (0.58%) to finish at 5,560.83, while the Nasdaq Composite Index closed up 95.18 points (0.55%) at 17,461.32. With this day's gains, the S&P 500 Index and the Dow Index have continued to show gains for six consecutive trading days.
While there was still no progress in trade negotiations between the United States and China, the smooth negotiations with other major trading partners boosted investor sentiment. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Vessenet noted on this day, "We will establish 18 important trade relations over the next few weeks," adding, "Seventeen of them are moving forward, excluding China." He specifically mentioned countries such as South Korea and Japan as active participants in the negotiations.
Howard Lutnick, U.S. Secretary of Commerce, also mentioned in an interview with CNBC that there are countries with which the United States has completed trade negotiations, stating that only approval from the counterpart's Prime Minister and Parliament remains. He did not disclose the name of the country, but there are speculations on Wall Street that it could likely be South Korea or India.
Separately, economic indicators worsened. According to the U.S. Conference Board (CB), the consumer confidence index for April was recorded at 86. This is a drop of 7.9 points from the previous month’s 93.9, marking the lowest level since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. The expectations index for April recorded 54.4, down 12.5 points from the previous month, the lowest in 13 years since October 2011. The U.S. goods trade deficit for March recorded its largest ever, reversing to an upward trend as corporations made massive advance orders ahead of Trump’s tariff announcement. The number of job openings in the U.S. for March also fell short of market expectations.
By sector, all sectors except energy showed strength. No sectors rose by more than 1%. The Magnificent Seven stocks closed mixed, with only Tesla rising by more than 2%.
The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) Volatility Index (VIX) recorded a decrease of 0.98 points (3.9%) to 24.17.