All NewsMarch 12, 2025

Stock Market Today: Stocks higher on CPI relief, but trade war concerns linger

U.S. stocks were mixed in mid-day Wednesday trading, while Treasury yields and the dollar held steady, as investors picked through a key inflation reading that could provide an early indication of the impact of President Donald Trump’s trade and tariff policies. 

Updated at 12:47 PM EST

Hey, Siri … 

Apple  (AAPL)  shares extended their recent slump, pulling the stock some 17% south of its mid-December peak, following a price target cut from Morgan Stanley analyst Erik Woodring.

Woodring, who lowered his price objective to to $252 per share, said the likely delay of the tech giant’s update to is Siri digital assistant will likely blunt iPhone sales this year and next. 

Apple shares were last marked 1.66% lower at $217.18 each, a move that pegs their year-to-date decline at around 11%.

Related: Top analyst overhauls Apple stock price target amid key iPhone challenge

Updated at 11:31 AM EST

Deal boost

Nvidia  (NVDA)  shares are powering higher in early trading, rebounding from the seven-month low the stock touched yesterday, amid new reports linking the AI chipmaker to a joint venture with Intel  (INTC)  and Taiwan Semiconductor. 

TSMC, as its commonly known, has approached Nvidia, as well as rivals Advanced Micro Devices  (AMD)  and Broadcom  (AVGO) , for a stake in the proposed chip foundry venture with Intel, according to Reuters, with Qualcomm  (QCOM)  also part of the overall pitch.

Nvidia shares were last marked 5.2% higher on the session at $114.41 each, with Broadcom up 2.8% and AMD up 2.7%.

Related: Intel stocks leaps on report tied to Nvidia and Broadcom

Updated at 10:20 AM EST

Canada hits back

Stocks pared some earlier gains after Canada unveiled retaliatory tariffs on around $20 billion worth of U.S goods, including steel and aluminum products, following President Trump’s imposition of levies yesterday.

Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly said the country couldn’t ‘idly stand by” while the U.S. “attack” the steel and aluminum industry. More than half of the aluminum imported into the United States comes from Canadian sources. 

The Bank of Canada, meanwhile, lowered its benchmark lending rate by 25 basis points, to 2.75%, as part of a counter-tariff measure to prop-up the domestic economy.

“We ended 2024 on a solid economic footing. But we’re now facing a new crisis,” Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem told reporters in Ottawa. “Depending on the extent and duration of new U.S. tariffs, the economic impact could be severe. The uncertainty alone is already causing harm.” 

The S&P 500 was last marked 22 points, or 0.4% higher on the session, with the Nasdaq up 184 points, or 1.06%.

Updated at 9:34 AM EST

Inflation relief

The S&P 500 was marked 56 points, or 1.02% higher, in the opening minutes of trading, with the Nasdaq rising 276 points, or 1.58%.

The Dow gained xxx points while the mid-cap Russell 2000 index rose 21 points, or 1.08% following the softer-than-expected February inflation report.

“One reassuring inflation report won’t be enough to undo all of the recent losses, but it could help kickstart a much-needed relief rally as the S&P 500 is on the verge of correction territory,” said Bret Kenwell, U.S. investment analyst at eToro.

“As we entered 2025, investors’ main economic worry centered around reflation,” he added. “But as the trade war continues to escalate and as economic policy uncertainty continues to rise, that worry has shifted from inflation to the labor market and the economy as a whole. In that respect, it will take more than a few reassuring inflation reports to ease investors’ worries.”

Updated at 8:40 AM EST

Inflation relief

U.S. consumer inflation eased modestly last month, suggesting little early impact on prices from President Trump’s tariff threats, which won’t be worked into the economy until later this spring.

The Commerce Department said its headline consumer price Index for the month of February was pegged at an annual rate of 2.8%, down from the 3% pace recorded in January and just inside Wall Street’s 2.9% forecast.

So-called core inflation, which strips out volatile components like food and energy, slowed to an annual rate of 3.1%, besting Wall Street’s 3.2% forecast and January’s 3.3% pace.

U.S. stocks extended gains following the data release, with futures tied to the S&P 500 suggesting an opening bell gain of 65 points and the Nasdaq called 302 points higher. The Dow is pegged for a 330 point advance.

Benchmark 10-year Treasury note yields slipped 4 basis points to 4.275% following the data release while 2-year notes were pegged at 3.935%.

Stock Market Today

Stocks ended firmly lower on Tuesday following a whipsaw session that saw the S&P 500 slip briefly into correction territory, defined as a 10% slump from a recent peak. The market move came amid a fresh round of tariff confusion from the White House.

Trump unveiled new levies on steel and aluminum imports, and threatened a larger duty on those products coming from Canada, only to back off later in the day following a phone call between Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Ontario Premier Doug Ford. 

Tariffs on the metals will remain in place, however, and with so-called reciprocal levies set for next month on dozens of U.S trading partners, the European Union responded Wednesday with $28 billion in targeted tariffs on U.S. goods.

President Donald Trump told a Business Roundtable event last night that he ‘doesn’t see’ the risk of recession in the world’s biggest economy.

Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

Trump himself warned that levies could be increased over the coming months, telling a Business Roundtable event late Tuesday that they’re “throwing off a lot of money for this country.”

The Business Roundtable itself issued a statement last week warning that prolonged tariffs would “run the risk of creating serious economic impact.”

The first indication of that impact could come today, in fact, through the Commerce Department’s February inflation report at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time. The report is expected to show a modest easing in both headline and core price pressures.

Related: Another U.S. bank warns on stocks amid $4 trillion market rout

“Concerns persist over the inflationary impact of President Trump’s tariff policies, which could contribute to price pressures and slow economic growth,” said Judith Raneri, vice president and senior portfolio manager at Gabelli U.S. Treasury Money Market Fund. 

“However, the Fed views tariffs as temporary price shocks rather than sustained inflationary drivers,” she added. “If this perspective holds, the central bank may look past short-term tariff-related price increases and remain positioned to cut rates later this year.”

Benchmark 10-year Treasury note yields were steady heading into the CPI inflation reading, as well as a $39 billion auction in new notes later in the session. They were last marked at 4.271%.

The U.S. dollar index, meanwhile, was last seen 0.18% higher against a basket of its global peers and trading at 103.481.

On Wall Street, futures contracts tied to the S&P 500, which has fallen 3.4% over the past two days for its worst performance since August, suggest an opening-bell gain of around 39 points.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average, meanwhile, is called 200 points higher while the tech-focused Nasdaq, which remains mired in correction territory from its December peak, is priced for a gain of around 165 points.

More Wall Street Analysis:

In overseas markets, Europe’s Stoxx 600 gained 0.93% in midday Frankfurt trading, while Britain’s FTSE 100 was marked 0.54% higher in London.

Overnight in Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 edged 0.07% higher on the session while the MSCI ex-Japan benchmark slipped 0.07% into the close of trading. 

Related: Veteran fund manager unveils eye-popping S&P 500 forecast