One piece of uncertainty hanging over Wall Street may be clearing after the Senate made moves to prevent a possible partial shutdown of the U.S. government. A deadline is looming at midnight for it.
Also Read: Gold prices hit a new record high as US economic fears stoke haven demandPast shutdowns have not been a huge deal for financial markets, with investors pointing to how U.S. economic growth recovered after funding was restored. But any clearing of uncertainty can be helpful when so much of it has been sending the U.S. stock market on big, scary swings not just day to day but also hour to hour.
The heaviest uncertainty lies with President Donald Trump’s escalating trade war. There, the main question is how much pain Trump will let the economy endure through tariffs and other policies in order to reshape the country and world as he wants. The president has said he wants manufacturing jobs back in the United States, along with a smaller U.S. government workforce and other fundamental changes.
U.S. households and businesses have already reported drops in confidence because of all the uncertainty about which tariffs will stick from Trump’s barrage of on-again, off-again announcements. That’s raised fears about a pullback in spending that could sap energy from the economy. Such fears have Wall Street focused on whether companies are seeing the uncertainty translate into real pain for their businesses.
Also Read: India, US discuss bilateral trade deal amid tariff tensionsUlta Beauty jumped 6.1% after the beauty products retailer reported stronger profit for the latest quarter. The company’s forecasts for upcoming revenue and profit fell short of analysts’ targets, but Chief Financial Officer Paula Oyibo said it wanted to be cautious “as we navigate ongoing consumer uncertainty.”
Other retailers and airlines have said recently that they’ve begun to see a change in their customers’ behavior because of the uncertainty created by tariffs. Gains for Big Tech stocks and companies in the artificial intelligence industry also helped support the market. Such stocks have been under the most pressure in the recent sell-off after critics said their prices shot too high in the frenzy around AI. Nvidia rose 3.7% to trim its loss for 2025 so far to 10.7%.
In stock markets abroad, indexes rose across much of Europe and Asia. Stocks jumped 2.1% in Hong Kong and 1.8% in Shanghai after China’s National Financial Regulatory Administration issued a notice ordering financial institutions to help develop consumer finance and encourage the use of credit cards, do more to aid borrowers who run into trouble, and be more transparent in their lending practices.
Economists say China needs consumers to spend more to get the economy out of its doldrums, although most have advocated broader, more fundamental reforms such as increasing wages, social welfare and support for public health and education.’
Also Read: Tesla sounds alarm on retaliatory tariffs as US President Donald Trump weighs new trade measures
In the bond market, Treasury yields rose to recover some of their sharp recent losses. The yield on the 10-year Treasury climbed to 4.30% from 4.27% late Thursday and from 4.16% at the start of last week.
Yields have been swinging since January, when they were approaching 4.80%. When worries worsen about the U.S. economy’s strength, yields have fallen. When those worries lessen or when concerns about inflation rise, yields have climbed.
