Stock Market Today: Markets Await Nvidia Earnings and FOMC Minutes Amid Tariff Relief Rally

Market Indexes Stabilize After Strong Tuesday Rally

U.S. stock futures are trading cautiously on Wednesday, May 28, 2025, as investors await two major market catalysts: Nvidia’s highly anticipated earnings report and the release of the Federal Reserve’s latest meeting minutes. This follows a strong rally on Tuesday where the Dow Jones Industrial Average surged over 700 points (1.8%), the S&P 500 climbed 2.05%, and the Nasdaq Composite jumped 2.47%.

As of early morning trading, Dow futures are down slightly by 28 points (0.07%), while S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures are also marginally lower, dipping 0.07% and 0.03% respectively. This pause comes after markets snapped a four-day losing streak, largely driven by President Donald Trump’s announcement that he would delay implementing a 50% tariff on European Union imports until July 9, providing temporary relief to global trade concerns.

Nvidia Earnings Take Center Stage

All eyes are on Nvidia (NVDA), which will report its fiscal first-quarter 2026 earnings after the market closes today. The AI chip giant is expected to post impressive growth, with analysts projecting a 66.2% surge in revenue to $43.28 billion compared to the same period last year. Earnings per share are forecast to increase to $0.73 from $0.61 a year ago.

Investors will be closely watching several key aspects of Nvidia’s report:

1. The impact of U.S. export restrictions to China, following Nvidia’s announcement of a $5.5 billion inventory write-down for its H20 chips in April
2. Updates on the production ramp-up of its next-generation Blackwell architecture
3. Forward guidance, with Wall Street eyeing full-year revenue of $198.8 billion for fiscal 2026

Options traders are pricing in approximately 6% volatility in Nvidia’s stock following the earnings announcement, implying a potential closing share price between $123 and $140 on Thursday. The results could have broad implications for the entire technology sector and market sentiment.

FOMC Minutes and Key Economic Data

The Federal Reserve will release the minutes from its May 6-7 Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting today, providing insights into policymakers’ discussions about interest rates, inflation concerns, and economic growth projections. Investors will scrutinize the minutes for any comments regarding the potential impact of tariffs on inflation and economic growth.

Market participants are particularly concerned about the possibility of stagflation—a combination of rising prices, higher unemployment, and slower economic growth—which could create a challenging environment for the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy decisions.

Looking ahead to Friday, May 30, the Commerce Department will release the Personal Consumption Expenditure (PCE) price index—the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge—along with consumer spending data for April. Economists expect PCE prices to have risen 2.2% year-over-year in April, which would be the lowest reading since September 2024.

Major Stocks Making News

Beyond Nvidia, several other notable companies are capturing investors’ attention:

– **Okta (OKTA)** shares plunged more than 12% in extended trading after the identity management software company maintained its guidance due to macroeconomic uncertainty, despite beating fiscal first-quarter expectations.

– **Tesla (TSLA)** surged 6.5% on Tuesday following CEO Elon Musk’s announcement about refocusing the company’s efforts.

– **Salesforce (CRM)**, **Synopsys (SNPS)**, **Veeva Systems (VEEV)**, **Agilent (A)**, and **HP Inc. (HPQ)** are all scheduled to report earnings today.

– **Dell (DELL)**, **Marvell Technology (MRVL)**, and **Zscaler (ZS)** will report on Thursday, followed by **Costco (COST)** on Friday.

Global Markets and Commodities

Asian markets tracked Wall Street’s gains overnight, with Japan’s Nikkei rising 0.6% and South Korea’s KOSPI climbing 1.1%, boosted by strength in chipmakers ahead of Nvidia’s earnings report. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rebounded 0.4% as Chinese industrial profits showed improvement.

In the commodities space, oil is trading near $65 per barrel, while gold has seen some buying from lower levels after a two-day decline, currently trading around $3,309 an ounce. The U.S. dollar has strengthened, approaching levels of 100 on the dollar index.

Market Outlook and Investor Sentiment

Market volatility has receded, with the VIX (volatility index) closing at 18.96 on Tuesday, down 7.8%. However, this could change depending on Nvidia’s earnings results and the content of the FOMC minutes.

Rich Saperstein, chief investment officer of Treasury Partners, advised investors to “look past the tariff turmoil” and focus on the potential benefits of deregulation, onshoring, and tax policies that could create “a great environment for investing” post-tariffs. He acknowledged that uncertainty could cause a slowdown in the next two quarters but suggested looking ahead to a more favorable environment in 2026.

As markets navigate through these significant catalysts today, investors should remain vigilant about how Nvidia’s performance and the Fed’s commentary might shape market direction in the coming weeks, particularly as concerns about tariffs and their potential impact on inflation and economic growth continue to loom over the market.