United States stocks closed higher on Friday (Saturday AEST), capping a volatile trading week on Wall Street.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 619.1 points, or 1.6%, to close at 40,212.7. The S&P 500 gained 1.8% to finish at 5,363.4, while the Nasdaq Composite climbed 2.1% to 16,724.5.
Markets pushed higher in the afternoon following White House remarks indicating that President Donald Trump was “optimistic” about the potential for China to return to the negotiating table.
The rally on Friday followed a dramatic week following the Trump administration’s announcement of a 90-day delay on certain tariffs.
The CBOE Volatility Index, or VIX, briefly spiked above 50 before falling back to around 37 the end of Friday.
Trade tensions remained a key driver of market action. On Thursday, the White House confirmed a sweeping 145% tariff on all Chinese goods, in contrast to a universal 10% tariff rate on other imports.
Goods from Canada and Mexico not covered under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement face 25% tariffs, particularly targeting aluminium and autos.
In response, China announced on Friday it would raise its tariffs on U.S. goods to 125%, up from the previous rate of 84%.
Despite the turbulence, all three major indices logged robust weekly gains. The S&P 500 rose 5.7%, notching its best weekly performance since November 2023. The Nasdaq gained 7.3%, its strongest week since November 2022, while the Dow advanced 5%.
On the economic front, March’s headline producer price index (PPI) fell 0.4% month-on-month, defying expectations for a 0.2% increase. The drop was largely attributed to a decline in energy prices.
Core PPI, which excludes food, energy, and trade, rose 0.1%, slowing from an upwardly revised 0.4% increase in February.
In a separate report, the University of Michigan’s April survey showed a decline in consumer sentiment, while inflation expectations jumped to their highest level since 1981, reflecting growing concerns about rising costs among U.S. households.
