US stocks hit more records following US-Japan trade deal
[July 24, 2025] By
STAN CHOE
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks set more records on Wednesday following a
trade deal between the world’s No. 1 and No. 4 economies, one that would
lower proposed tariffs on Japanese imports coming to the United States.
The S&P 500 added 0.8% to its all-time high. The Dow Jones Industrial
Average rallied 507 points, or 1.1%, and the Nasdaq composite climbed
0.6% to hit its own record.
Stocks jumped even more in Tokyo, where the Nikkei 225 rallied 3.5%
after President Donald Trump announced a trade framework that would
place a 15% tax on imports coming from Japan. That’s lower than the 25%
rate that Trump had earlier said would kick in on Aug. 1.
“It’s a sign of the times that markets would cheer 15% tariffs,” said
Brian Jacobsen, chief economist at Annex Wealth Management. “A year ago,
that level of tariffs would be shocking. Today, we breathe a sigh of
relief.”
Trump has proposed stiff taxes on imports from around the world, which
carry the double-edged risk of driving up inflation for U.S. households
while slowing the economy. But many of Trump’s tariffs are currently on
pause, giving time to reach deals with other countries that could lower
the tax rates. Trump also announced a trade agreement with the
Philippines on Tuesday.
So far, the U.S. economy has seemed to hold up OK despite the pressures
on it. And tariffs already in place may be having less of an effect than
expected, at least when it comes to the prices that U.S. households are
paying at the moment.
“The main lesson about tariffs so far is that passthrough to consumer
prices is tracking somewhat lower than in 2019,” according to Goldman
Sachs economist David Mericle.
Tariffs are certainly having an effect, to be sure, as big U.S.
companies across industries have been showing through their profit
updates in recent days.
Hasbro took a $1 billion, non-cash hit to its results for the spring to
write down the value of some of its assets following a review triggered
by the implementation of tariffs. It said tariffs have had no impact yet
on how much profit it’s making from each $1 of its sales, but it expects
to see costs ramp during the current quarter.
Hasbro’s stock fell 0.9% even though it reported a stronger profit for
the latest quarter than analysts expected, when not including the $1
billion charge.
Texas Instruments’ stock also fell despite delivering results for the
latest quarter that were above analysts’ expectations. It gave a
forecasted range for profit in the current quarter whose midpoint fell a
bit shy of Wall Street’s.
Analysts pointed to some cautious commentary from Texas Instruments
executives about how the uncertainty created by tariffs could slow
demand. Its stock sank 13.3%.
Most of the stocks on Wall Street nevertheless rose, including a 14.6%
jump for GE Vernova. The energy company not only delivered a stronger
profit than analysts expected, it also raised its forecasts for revenue
from its power and electrification businesses.
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Specialist Alex Weitzman works at his post on the floor of the New
York Stock Exchange, Monday, July 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
 GE Vernova said that the inflation
it’s expecting to see as a result of tariffs may be trending toward
the lower end of $300 million to $400 million, net of mitigating
actions.
Lamb Weston rallied 16.3% after the supplier of French fries and
other potato products delivered better results for the latest
quarter than analysts expected and said it expects customers will
continue to eat fries even with an uncertain economy. It also
announced a plan to cut at least $250 million in costs by cutting
about 4% of its workforce and making other moves.
Elsewhere on Wall Street, several stocks jumped as traders search
for the next “meme stock” that could ride a wave of online
enthusiasm to high prices, regardless of what the company’s profits
are doing. Krispy Kreme, which came into the day with a 58.4% loss
for the year so far, jumped nearly 39% shortly after trading began.
It then gave back most of it and ended with a gain of 4.6%. GoPro
rose 12.4%.
That’s even as other potential meme stocks lost their momentum.
Opendoor Technologies, which had more than tripled between the last
two Mondays, fell 20.3%.
All told, the S&P 500 rose 49.29 points to 6,358.91. The Dow Jones
Industrial Average jumped 507.85 to 45,010.29, and the Nasdaq
composite gained 127.33 to 21,020.02.
In stock markets abroad, indexes rose across Asia and Europe
following Trump’s announcements of trade deals.
Japan’s market was the big winner, where a series of automakers gave
no public reaction as their stock prices rallied. Japanese companies
tend to be cautious about their public reactions, and some business
officials have privately remarked in off-record comments that they
hesitate to say anything because Trump keeps changing his mind.
Elsewhere, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 1.6%, and France’s CAC 40
gained 1.4% for two of the world’s bigger moves.
In the bond market, Treasury yields ticked higher.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.38% from 4.35% late
Tuesday.
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AP Business Writer Yuri Kageyama contributed.
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