Market Update: Wall Street Edges Higher as Investors Eye Big Tech Earnings and Trade Developments

S&P 500 Extends Winning Streak Amid Cautious Trading

The stock market is showing modest gains on Tuesday, April 29, 2025, as investors navigate a busy week of high-profile earnings reports and key economic data releases. The S&P 500 is extending its winning streak to a sixth consecutive session, building on Monday’s marginal gain that marked its longest winning streak since November.

As of midday trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 0.24% at around 40,350, while the S&P 500 has added 0.13% to approximately 5,535. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite is also in positive territory, gaining 0.13% to trade near 17,390.

Trade Tensions Easing as Administration Signals Tariff Relief

A key driver of today’s market optimism is news that the Trump administration plans to reduce the impact of automotive tariffs. Officials announced they will alleviate some duties imposed on foreign parts in domestically manufactured cars and prevent tariffs on foreign-made vehicles from stacking on top of other duties.

This development has boosted automaker stocks, with Ford (F) up 1.1%, Tesla (TSLA) gaining 0.8%, and General Motors (GM) rising 0.9% ahead of its quarterly results expected later today.

Big Tech Earnings in Focus This Week

Market participants are closely watching this week’s packed earnings calendar, with four of the “Magnificent Seven” megacap stocks set to report: Meta Platforms (META), Microsoft (MSFT), Apple (AAPL), and Amazon (AMZN). These reports will provide crucial insights into the health of the technology sector and broader economy.

Other notable companies reporting today include Coca-Cola (KO), United Parcel Service (UPS), and General Motors (GM). So far this earnings season, approximately 73% of S&P 500 companies that have reported have exceeded Wall Street expectations, slightly below the 5-year average of 77%.

Key Economic Data on Tap

Investors are also awaiting several important economic reports this week. Today brings consumer confidence data and JOLTs job openings figures, while later in the week markets will digest U.S. first-quarter GDP and nonfarm payrolls reports.

Economists expect Wednesday’s GDP report to show U.S. economic growth slowed to a 0.8% annual rate in the first quarter of 2025, down from a 2.4% pace at the end of last year. Friday’s jobs report is anticipated to show a slowdown in hiring to 125,000 new positions in April, compared to 228,000 in March.

Market Performance Year-to-Date

Despite recent gains, all three major indexes remain in negative territory for the year. The Dow Jones is down 5.38%, the Nasdaq has fallen 10.14%, and the S&P 500 has declined 5.99% year-to-date. For April specifically, the Dow Jones and S&P 500 are on track to finish the month in the red, down 3.19% and 0.92% respectively, while the Nasdaq shows a marginal increase of 0.15%.

Notable Stock Movements

Among individual stocks making significant moves today, NXP Semiconductors (NXPI) has fallen 8.1% after only slightly beating revenue expectations and announcing CEO Kurt Sievers will retire by year-end.

In the financial sector, HSBC launched a $3 billion share buyback after reporting a 25% fall in first-quarter profit, while Deutsche Bank posted a 39% rise in first-quarter profit.

Looking Ahead

Market analysts remain cautiously optimistic but note significant challenges ahead. “It shouldn’t really be especially surprising that participants took something of a ‘wait-and-see’ approach to proceedings… with conviction lacking across the board, and markets largely meandering along in a relatively directionless fashion,” said Michael Brown, senior research strategist at Pepperstone.

As April draws to a close, investors will be closely monitoring the remaining earnings reports and economic data for clues about the market’s direction in the coming months, particularly regarding the impact of trade tensions and potential Federal Reserve interest rate cuts later this year.