Following the release of quarterly results by two Big Tech companies, stock futures increased on Wednesday. Dow Jones Industrial Average-linked futures increased by 138 points, or 0.3%. Nasdaq 100 futures increased 1.3%, while S&P 500 futures increased 0.8%. Due to higher-than-expected sales in the first quarter, Meta Platforms saw a more than 5% increase in extended trading. Strong performance from its Azure cloud business, positive forecast, and top and bottom-line beats in the fiscal third quarter drove Microsoft’s roughly 7% surge. Following news that its board has begun looking for a CEO to replace Elon Musk, Tesla’s stock dropped more than 3% during overnight trading on Robinhood.
The 30-stock Dow and the S&P 500 both reported gains in erratic trading during Wednesday’s prior session, recovering from earlier losses. The blue-chip Dow dropped more than 780 points at the day’s lows, while the broad market index was down more than 2%. The Commerce Department’s dismal economic figures, which showed that the gross domestic product decreased at an annualized pace of 0.3%, first alarmed traders. Since the first quarter of 2022, it was the first quarter with negative growth. The Dow Jones poll of economists aimed for a 0.4% increase. The Dow and S&P 500 rebounded into positive territory as a consequence of investors buying back into the market late in the session, despite the disappointing results.
The last trading day of April was Wednesday. Stocks were initially soaring following President Donald Trump’s announcement of “reciprocal” tariffs on April 2 and the suspension of the highest taxes that followed. The S&P 500 temporarily entered a bear market during the month, dropping more than 20% from its record high in February, before recovering some of its losses. In the end, the broad market index ended Wednesday around 9% lower than its closing record. However, the recovery was insufficient to prevent a losing April for the Dow and S&P 500, which fell roughly 3.2% and 0.8%, respectively. On the other hand, the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.9% over that time.
“We think the sharpest Trump policy swings are likely behind us and that the outlook is becoming more constructive,” wrote Solita Marcelli, chief investment officer at UBS Global Wealth Management, on Wednesday. “Market volatility may persist until more tariff certainty emerges.” “We think investors should concentrate on strategies that both manage and look through volatility, given the political unpredictability, shifting trade policies, and choppy markets that Trump’s first 100 days have brought.”
Investors will be waiting for the quarterly results of Apple and Amazon in the afternoon on Thursday, after CVS Health, Eli Lilly, and McDonald’s in the morning. Regarding economic statistics, traders are anticipating the U.S. manufacturing sector report and weekly unemployment claims data. Friday is the deadline for the important nonfarm payrolls data.