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US stocks edged higher on Tuesday as renewed US-China trade talks entered their second day after an upbeat initial meeting.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) gained 0.2%, while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) rose nearly 0.4%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) rose 0.4%.
The mood is cautious as investors keep a close eye on the trade talks, which restarted in the morning in London. While a deal on access to China's rare earth minerals is the US's priority, negotiators are navigating contentious issues that have fueled a rift between the two trading partners.
Any signs of progress will likely be greeted with relief by markets, given switchbacks in President Trump's tariff policy and in US-China relations have fed uncertainty about risks to economic growth worldwide. On Monday, stocks on Wall Street edged higher after White House officials suggested discussions had been productive — though Trump himself cautioned that "China's not easy".
Read more: The latest on Trump's tariffs
Chinese stocks slid suddenly on Tuesday before the meeting resumed, a bout of volatility that suggested investors aren't confident of success. “The market is too sensitive,” Fu Shifeng, investment director at Cheng Zhou Investment, told Bloomberg. “People seem to be speculating that the talks didn’t go well.”
Meanwhile, a gauge of US small-business optimism came in higher in May — the first rise since September — amid the trade truce with China. But worries about Trump's tax-and-spending megabill stoked uncertainty about the outlook, the NFIB survey found.
Investors are now counting down to the release of the May Consumer Price Index (CPI) report on Wednesday. The report will offer fresh insight into the state of inflation amid Trump's evolving trade policy. Analysts expect to see that price pressures accelerated last month.
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S&P 500 inches higher, just about 2% away from record
Stocks gained on Tuesday mid-trading as investors awaited new details on the high-level trade talks between the US and China, sending the S&P 500 (^GSPC) just over 100 points away from its all-time closing high.
The broad-based index inched up nearly 0.4%, trading at around 6,027, just about 2% away from its February record closing high.
Silver and gold retreat as precious metal rally pauses
Gold (GC=F) and silver (SI=F) prices took a breather from their recent rally on Tuesday.
Gold retreated less than 0.5% during the session to hover near $3,347 per ounce. Silver hovered near $36 per ounce, its highest level since February 2012.
Precious metals have surged higher recently amid uncertainty over President Trump's tariff policy and the continued decline of the US dollar.
Bitcoin climbs toward new high, token hovers near $109,000
Bitcoin (BTC-USD) climbed toward new highs on Tuesday, amid a series of tailwinds for the crypto space.
The token was trading north of $109,000 each by 8:30 a.m. ET on Tuesday. Bitcoin touched an all-time high just under $112,000 last month.
Companies have increasingly been adding bitcoin to their balance sheets in recent months, following in the footsteps of Strategy (MSTR), the largest public corporate holder of the token.
"Over time, bitcoin has proven itself to be a better hedge against inflation than many other asset classes, even gold ... adding bitcoin to a corporate treasury seems like a prudent choice," said Elliot Johnson, CEO of the Bitcoin Treasury Corporation.
Legislation in Congress that would regulate stablecoins, digital assets backed by the US dollar, has lifted investor optimism over the crypto space.
Tesla stock higher on robotaxi momentum, Musk-Trump feud cooling
Yahoo Finance's Pras Subramanian reports:
Read more here.
S&P 500, Nasdaq edge higher as China-US talks continue
Stocks edged higher on Tuesday as trade talks between the US and China resumed.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) wavered around the flat line. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) rose 0.1%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) also gained about 0.2%.
High-level trade talks in London restarted on Tuesday as investors watched for any signs of progress in the trade negotiations between Washington and Beijing.
Meanwhile, bitcoin (BTC-USD) climbed toward new highs on Tuesday, hovering above $109,000 per token.
Vaccine stocks steady after RFK Jr. removes all CDC vaccine advisory members
Vaccine stocks were surprisingly resilient after US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. fired all 17 members of the vaccine advisory committee at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Monday.
Moderna (MRNA) stock fell 0.8% in premarket trading, while shares of Pfizer (PFE) and Merck (MRK) were roughly flat. BioNTech (BNTX) gained 1.4%.
The move could create longer lead times for the CDC to review and approve vaccines, and the panel has significant influence over whether insurance companies and Medicaid cover the immunizations.
In an op-ed published in the Wall Street Journal on Monday, RFK Jr. stated that he was reconfiguring the panel to restore trust in vaccines.
IBM stock rises premarket on quantum computing step-forward
IBM (IBM) stock added 0.8% in premarket trading on Thursday after the company announced it is building the world's first large-scale quantum computer, called Starling, capable of operating without errors.
Yahoo Finance's Laura Bratton reports:
J.M. Smucker stock sinks on disappointing outlook
Shares of J.M. Smucker (SJM) are sinking premarket after the food producer forecast full-year profit below Wall Street expectations.
Smucker projected adjusted earnings for the year to come in at $9.50 a share, compared to estimates of $10.25, per Bloomberg.
It highlights the challenging environment for consumer packaged goods as consumers pull back on spending on items like Jif peanut butter, Milk-Bone pet treats, and Hostess snack cakes. Smucker also noted it would raise prices as tariffs weigh on its coffee business.
J.M. Smucker stock fell over 7% following the company's quarterly results.
Good morning. Here's what's happening today.
Trending tickers: Tesla and McDonald's
Here are some top stocks trending on Yahoo Finance in premarket trading:
Tesla, Inc. (TSLA) stock rose 2% before the bell on Tuesday, after being hit with 2 downgrades on Monday due to the fallout from CEO Elon Musk and President Trump's dustup. Tesla's robotaxi test is set to take place on June 12 in Austin, Texas.
McDonald's (MCD) shares fell over 1% in premarket trading today after analysts at Morgan Stanley downgraded the fast food company on Monday to a Hold from a Buy. Morgan Stanley also cut its price target to $324 from $329.
Big Tech is driving bullish flows in stocks, Citi strategists say
Bloomberg reports:
US technology heavyweights have attracted a flurry of bullish bets as optimism around the economic outlook overshadows trade concerns, according to Citigroup Inc. (C) strategists.
Long positions in the technology-heavy Nasdaq 100 (^NDX) increased by more than in the S&P 500 (^GSPC) last week, the team led by Chris Montagu wrote in a note. Exposure has been mainly driven by new bullish bets, while short bets steadily declined across indexes, they said.
Chinese stocks fall amid trade talk rumors
Chinese stocks fell on Tuesday ahead of the second day of trade negotiations between the US and China. Investors are cautious as the two biggest economies seek to resolve some contentious issues.
Bloomberg News reports:
US stocks lose support from Asia's 'buy the dip' retail traders
When President Trump set off a global stock market slump in April with his package of sweeping new tariffs, small investors across Asia rushed to the US stock market to buy the dip. Now they're backing away, data for May shows.
Bloomberg reports:
Apple's WWDC touts biggest software changes in years, but lacks splashy AI reveal
Apple (AAPL) is holding its highly anticipated annual developers' conference. Yahoo Finance's Daniel Howley reports from Silicon Valley:
Apple on Monday announced sweeping changes to its product ecosystems, including a wide-ranging revamp of its iOS operating system for its iPhones, as well as the software that powers its iPads and Macs.
The updates, which the company debuted as part of its WWDC developer event held at its headquarters in Cupertino, Calif., mark the biggest shift in Apple's software design in years. Still, the improvements were light on new AI capabilities at a time when Wall Street is looking for Apple to prove it can compete in the space. ...
While Apple showed off a handful of new features for its Apple Intelligence platform, it's unlikely to quell fears that the company is falling behind the likes of Microsoft and Google in the rapidly evolving space.
