Market Snapshot for Wednesday 5/28/2025
- S&P 500 – 5,888.55 (-0.56%)
- Dow Jones Industrial Average – 42,098.70 (-0.58%)
- NASDAQ – 19,100.94 (-0.51%)
Market Performance
All three major indexes went into the red on Wednesday as investors waited for Nvidia’s earnings. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell around 0.6%, or around 250 points. The S&P 500 declined around 0.55%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite ticked lower by 0.5%.
Economic Takeaways –
- Minutes from the Federal Reserve’s meeting earlier in Mayrevealed officials acknowledged they could face “difficult tradeoffs” as tariffs potentially threaten their dual mandates for price stability and maximum employment.
- India reportedly offered to lower its own tariffs on some American products.
- President Trump rejected an emerging notion on Wall Streetthat he is “chickening out” with his on-again, off-again tariff moves.
- Research from Bespoke Investment Group shows that the S&P 500 is rising an average of 0.36% in the next trading session following a down day for the index.
- The Utilities sector fell more than 1.3%, leading the losses among the 11 S&P 500 sectors.
Gold –
- On Wednesday, gold traded around $3,300 per ounce, holding steady despite some fluctuations throughout the day.
Oil –
- Crude oil prices rose on Wednesday as concerns over supply disruptions outweighed a looming decision over the possibility of increased production from OPEC+ in July.
- West Texas Intermediate futures rallied 2% to hover above $62 per barrel. Brent crude also traded above $64 per barrel.
Bitcoin –
- Bitcoin dropped below $108,000 on Wednesday, down 2.6% despite the announcement that GameStop made a purchase.
The Fed Minutes are In
During their May 6–7 meeting, Federal Reserve officials acknowledged they could soon face “difficult tradeoffs” as inflation and unemployment both trend upward, according to newly released meeting minutes. Fed staff warned of heightened recession risks, projecting a significant rise in inflation—driven largely by proposed tariffs—and a weakening job market, with unemployment expected to surpass long-term estimates of full employment by year’s end and remain elevated for two years.
“Almost all participants commented on the risk that inflation could prove to be more persistent than expected,” the minutes noted, especially as the economy adjusts to new import taxes proposed by the Trump administration. Officials said the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) might need to choose between tightening policy to control inflation or cutting rates to support growth and jobs.
The minutes also reflected growing uncertainty about the economic outlook, prompting a cautious stance from the Fed as it awaits clearer signals on the cumulative effects of government policy changes.
Although Fed staff had viewed the likelihood of a recession as nearly equal to a scenario of slowing growth, that assessment was tempered after President Trump postponed the most severe tariffs, including a proposed 145% levy on Chinese goods that had threatened to disrupt global trade. Still, those tariffs are only on hold until July, leaving policymakers and businesses uncertain about the economic path ahead.
At the May meeting, the Fed opted to keep its benchmark rate unchanged at 4.25% to 4.5%. Chair Jerome Powell emphasized in a post-meeting press conference that the Fed was effectively in wait-and-see mode until the administration’s trade policy solidifies. Officials also flagged recent bond market volatility and shifts in the dollar’s safe-haven role as developments that could have lasting economic effects.
Trump Administration Tells Some American Companies to Stop China Sales
The Trump administration has restricted certain U.S. companies from selling products to China, a spokesperson for the Commerce Department told CNN on Wednesday.
According to the spokesperson, the department is “reviewing exports of strategic importance to China” and, during the review process, has in some cases either suspended existing export licenses or added new licensing requirements.
The Financial Times, which first reported the development, said the restrictions target U.S. firms that provide software used in semiconductor design, citing sources familiar with the situation.
The companies reportedly affected include Cadence, Synopsys, and Siemens EDA, according to the FT. CNN has not independently confirmed this information, and the three firms did not respond to requests for comment.
Nvidia Delivers and Misses
Nvidia (NVDA) reported its first quarter earnings after the bell on Wednesday, beating expectations on revenue but falling short on adjusted earnings per share (EPS) due to the impact of the ban on shipments of its H20 chips to China. The company also said it expects to miss out on roughly $8 billion in sales of H20s in the second quarter.
“Global demand for NVIDIA’s AI infrastructure is incredibly strong,” CEO Jensen Huang said in a release.
The U.S. ban on H20 chip sales to China, originally intended to limit advanced AI capabilities, backfired, according to Huang, who criticized U.S. policy at a press conference in Taipei. He argued that the restrictions are benefiting China’s domestic AI chipmakers.
Meanwhile, Nvidia has received temporary relief after the Trump administration scrapped Biden-era AI diffusion rules, which would have imposed tighter export controls. However, new export guidelines are expected in the future.
Top Gainers
Several stocks experienced significant gains. Some of the top gainers included:
- Joby Aviation, Inc. (JOBY) soared 28.78%
- Box, Inc. (BOX) moved higher by 17.23%
- Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (ANF) exploded 14.67%
- Unity Software, Inc. (U) surged 12.52%
- Vail Resorts, Inc. (MTN) rose 8.67%
- Heico Corp. (HEI-A) moved up 7.76%
- Fair Isaac Corp. (FICO) jumped 7.74%
- Heico Corp. (HEI) spiked 7.42%
- Freedom Holding Corp. (FRHC) moved up 6.44%
- Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (AAP) surged 6.27%
Top Losers
The top US stock losers today, based on percentage change included:
- Tempus AI, Inc. (TEM) moved lower 19.23%
- Okta, Inc. (OKTA) moved lower 16.16%
- Sable Offshore Corp. (SOC) sank 15.31%
- Pony AI, Inc. (PONY) fell 13.54%
- GameStop Corp. (GME) moved down 10.85%
- Cadence Design Systems (CDNS) moved lower 10.67%
- Synopsys, Inc. (SNPS) sank 9.64%
- Mara Holdings, Inc. (MARA) dragged 9.61%
- Huron Consulting Group (HURN) moved down 9.36%
- GDS Holdings Limited (GDS) slumped 8.73%
Notables
- Nvidia (NVDA) soars 5% in after-hours trading on record revenues.
- Salesforce (CRM) raised its annual results forecast on strong cloud spending.
- HP (HP) stock tumbled on a downbeat profit forecast and tariff troubles.
- E.l.f. Beauty (ELF) inks deal with model Hailey Bieber for $1 billion.
- Trump administration pulls back its $3B loan to Sunnova Energy (NOVA).
- Tesla (TSLA) is eyeing a June 12th launch date for robotaxi service in Austin, Texas.
- GameStop shares went lower as the company made its first bet on Bitcoin.
- HP (HP) missed earnings estimates and cut guidance after the close, blaming tariff impacts. “Now by June, we expect almost no product coming to North America coming from China. So it’s a very significant change,” said HP CEO Enrique Lores to Yahoo’s Brian Sozzi.
- Joby Aviation (JOBY) shares surged 11% after Toyota (TM) invested $250 million in the electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft maker.
- Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) stock rocketed 27% higher in premarket trading after the retailer reported better-than-expected first quarter results.
- Macy’s (M) stock gained 3% in premarket trading after the retailer cleared a low bar for earnings expectations set by Wall Street.
What to Watch Ahead
Thursday: The Q1 GDP second estimate will be out and earnings from Best Buy (BBY), Foot Locker (FL), Kohl’s (KSS), Costco (COST), Dell (DELL), Marvell Technology (MRLV), Ulta Beauty (ULTA), and Gap (GAP).
Friday: April PCE prices, April Core PCE prices, and the May University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment- Final.
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