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A pair of traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. (AP Photo/Richard Drew) NEW YORK, United States — Wall Street’s rally kept rolling Thursday as better-than-expected profits for US companies piled up, though CEOs said they’re unsure whether it will last because of uncertainty created by President Donald Trump’s trade war. The S&P 500 charged 2 percent higher and pulled within 11 percent of its record set earlier this year.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 486 points, or 1.2 percent, while the Nasdaq composite jumped 2.7 percent.
Tech stocks helped lead the way. These include ServiceNow after the AI platform company delivered a stronger profit for the start of 2025 than analysts expected. The company, whose AI agents help clients manage their customers, saw its stock jump 15.
5 percent. This was after it also gave a forecasted range for upcoming subscription revenue that beat some analysts’ expectations. Southwest Airlines likewise reported stronger results than expected for the first three months of the year.
However, its stock flipped between gains and losses through the morning. This was after it also became the latest US carrier to say the outlook for the economy looks so cloudy that it’s pulling some of its financial forecasts for the year. CEO Bob Jordan said the company is “controlling what we can control.
” It’s cutting how much flying it will do in the second half of the year. Southwest’s stock eventually pulled higher in afternoon trading and finished up 3.7 percent.
Rival American Airlines, meanwhile, pulled its financial forecasts for the full year. It said it plans to provide an update when “the economic outlook becomes clearer.” Its stock rose 3.
1 percent after it also topped profit expectations for the latest quarter. Companies across industries have been talking about how difficult it is to give financial forecasts for the upcoming year, as Wall Street typically expects them to do. This was because of the on-again-off-again rollout of Trump’s tariffs.
US stocks rallied the prior two days on hopes that Trump was softening his approach on tariffs. Likewise with his criticism of the Federal Reserve, which had earlier shaken markets. READ: China says there are no negotiations with the US over tariffs But China, the world’s second-largest economy, on Thursday denied it’s involved in active negotiations with the US over tariffs.
Beijing said that any suggestion of progress was as groundless as “trying to catch the wind.” Calling Trump’s policy announcements “headline turbulence,” Tan Jing Yi of Mizuho Bank warned that global economies could be hurt in the long run. Tan, who is with the bank’s Asia & Oceania Treasury Department, added: “Sentiments swing from hopes of intense relief to inflicted economic gloom.
” This week began with a steep loss for US stocks on fears about the trade war. It’s been a microcosm of the market’s severe swings in recent weeks as investors struggle with how to react to conditions that sometimes change by the hour. The only certainty is that the market will likely keep swinging until more clarity arrives on tariffs.
Many investors expect that the levies would cause a recession unless they’re rolled back. “It’s an unhealthy market backdrop right now, and we’re trying not to react too much,” said John Belton, a portfolio manager at Gabelli Funds. Households across the United States are preparing for the higher prices that economists say tariffs would bring.
Meanwhile, the head of the International Monetary fund urged countries to move “swiftly” to resolve their trade disputes that threaten global economic growth. In the meantime, many US companies are continuing to report stronger profit than analysts expected for the start of 2025. At the same time, they offer caution and uncertainty about the year ahead.
All told, the S&P 500 rose 108.91 points to 5,484.77.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 486.83 to 40,093.40, and the Nasdaq composite jumped 457.
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I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy . In stock markets abroad, indexes were mixed amid modest moves across much of Europe and Asia..
