Today’s Midday Market Update: US-UK Trade Deal Boosts Indexes as Tech Stocks Rally
Markets Surge on Prospect of First Post-Tariff Trade Agreement
As of midday Thursday, May 8, 2025, U.S. stock markets are rallying strongly on news that President Trump is set to announce a comprehensive trade deal with the United Kingdom. This marks the first trade agreement since Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs were announced in early April, providing investors with optimism that trade tensions may be easing.
The S&P 500 is up approximately 1% in midday trading, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite has surged about 1.5%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is also showing strength, climbing roughly 0.8% as investors react positively to the trade developments.
US-UK Trade Deal: A Potential Turning Point
President Trump is scheduled to hold a news conference at 10:00 AM ET in the Oval Office to announce what he described as a “full and comprehensive” trade agreement with the United Kingdom. In a social media post, Trump stated this deal would “cement the relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom for many years to come” and indicated that “many other deals” are in “serious stages of negotiation.”
Market analysts view this development as potentially significant, with Deutsche Bank strategists noting, “Given that full trade deals take years to negotiate, this will likely be a framework and it will be interesting to see whether the 10% baseline tariff stays.”
Tech Sector Leads the Rally
Semiconductor stocks are among today’s biggest gainers following news that the Trump administration plans to rescind and modify rules that had curbed the export of sophisticated artificial-intelligence chips. Nvidia (NVDA) shares have jumped nearly 2% in midday trading, while Broadcom (AVGO) is up 2.4% and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) has advanced 1.9%.
Other tech giants are showing mixed performance. Amazon (AMZN) has gained over 1%, while Alphabet (GOOGL), Meta Platforms (META), and Tesla (TSLA) are posting modest gains. Microsoft (MSFT) and Apple (AAPL) are trading slightly lower after their recent earnings reports.
Fed Policy and Economic Outlook
Markets are still digesting yesterday’s Federal Reserve decision to hold interest rates steady. Fed Chair Jerome Powell indicated the central bank would take a “wait and see” approach to policy, highlighting economic uncertainty and market volatility created by Trump’s tariff initiatives.
Traders now anticipate a potential rate cut by September, with markets pricing in approximately 75 basis points of rate reductions by the end of 2025.
Upcoming Market Events
Several significant economic indicators and corporate events are on the horizon:
– Weekly jobless claims data will be released later today
– The Federal Bank of New York’s inflation expectations survey is due out this afternoon
– Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), Shopify, and ConocoPhillips (COP) are scheduled to report earnings before markets open tomorrow
– U.S. and Chinese trade representatives are set to meet in Switzerland this weekend for preliminary trade discussions
Notable Stock Movements
Beyond the tech sector, several stocks are making significant moves today:
– Arm Holdings is down 9.6% after the chipmaker forecast first-quarter revenue and profit below Wall Street estimates
– Fortinet (FTNT) has slumped 8.6% following a disappointing second-quarter revenue forecast
– Disney (DIS) shares jumped 10% after the media giant’s quarterly results topped expectations
– Cryptocurrency-related stocks are rising as Bitcoin surges to $97,200
Market Outlook
As we move through the remainder of the trading day, investors will be closely watching President Trump’s trade announcement for details on tariff reductions and the framework of the US-UK agreement. The market’s positive reaction suggests growing optimism that the administration may be softening its stance on global trade policies, potentially reducing economic uncertainty that has weighed on stocks in recent weeks.
With earnings season winding down, attention will increasingly shift to how companies plan to navigate the evolving trade landscape and what additional trade agreements might follow in the coming weeks.
