Wall Street closed mixed on Tuesday as market participants were busy weighing uncertainties related to tariff rates and trade policies. However, strong second-quarter 2025 earnings boosted investors’ confidence in risky assets like equities. The Dow ended in positive territory while the Nasdaq Composite finished in the red. The S&P 500 managed to close marginally higher.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) advanced 0.4% or 179.37 points to close at 44,502.44 after a choppy trading session. Notably, 20 components of the 30-stock index ended in positive territory and 10 finished in negative territory. At intraday low, the blue-chip index was down 50.50 points. The index is currently 1.3% away from its all-time high posted in December 2024.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite finished at 20,892.69, falling 0.4% due to the weak performance of major AI chip manufacturers. AI chip makers suffered following hiccups in the inception of the $500 billion AI project — Stargate. The tech-laden index posted its first negative close after six consecutive sessions.
The S&P 500 was up 0.1% to finish at 6,309.62, marking its 11th closing high this year. Out of 11 broad sectors of the broad-market index, 10 ended in positive territory while one ended in negative territory.
The Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR (XLY), the Health Care Select Sector SPDR (XLV), the Materials Select Sector SPDR (XLB), the Real Estate Select Sector SPDR (XLRE) and the Utilities Select Sector SPDR (XLU) rose 1%, 1.9%, 1.4%, 1.7% and 1.2%, respectively. On the other hand, the Technology Select Sector SPDR (XLK) fell 0.9%.
The fear-gauge CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) was down 0.9% to 16.50. A total of 18,8 billion shares were traded on Tuesday, higher than the last 20-session average of 17.7 billion. The S&P 500 registered 21 new highs and one new low, while the Nasdaq posted 73 new highs and 41 new lows.
On Tuesday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that the Trump administration is likely to extend the Aug 12 trade deadline with China. Bessent is expected to clear the confusion in this regard when he meets his Chinese counterparts in Stockholm next week.
On July 20, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said on CBS News that the Trump administration will start implementing tariffs from Aug 1. Lutnick stated, “That’s a hard deadline, so on Aug 1, the new tariff rates will come in.” He also asserted “Nothing stops countries from talking to us after Aug 1, but they’re going to start paying the tariffs on Aug 1.”
