Market Report for Tuesday, May 27, 2025
Wall Street sprinted back from last week’s slump on Tuesday, fueled by Trump’s trade policy spin cycle, a jolt in consumer confidence, and falling bond yields. Threats receded, optimism returned, and risk-on got its groove back.
Level Change 5/27/25 (%)
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
+1.8 Dow
+2.5 Nasdaq
+2.4 Nasdaq 100
+2.1 S&P 500
+2.1 S&P 400
+2.6 S&P 600
President Trump opened Tuesday by declaring victory over Europe—again. After threatening a 50% tariff blitz just days ago, he now says he’s delaying it until July 9 thanks to “a very positive call” with European Commission President von der Leyen. The call, reportedly free of shouting, ended with Trump hailing EU willingness to “fast-track” trade talks.
It was the second mood shift on EU tariffs in 72 hours, leaving allies, advisers, and probably autocorrect in a state of confusion.
Supporters hailed Trump’s Friday duties diatribe as tactical brilliance, arguing that only a presidential cannonball could dislodge fossilized Europe. Critics saw it less as strategy, more as another reel in his audition to become the face of attention-deficit diplomacy. Either way, markets applauded the cooling—if not of tensions, then at least of trigger fingers.
Falling yields helped, too.
Japanese officials unfurled a delicate origami of intent to trim super-long bond issuance, soothing global bond markets still rattled from last week’s rout. Yields dropped, the yen slipped, and the ripple carried across the Pacific to US Treasuries. The 30-year yield notched its biggest drop since April. Apparently, when Japan whispers “shōshō omachi kudasai,” the market sits quietly and behaves.
Even Main Street cracked a grin.
May’s consumer confidence jumped to 98 from 85.7 in April, snapping a five-month skid. The report pinned the rebound on easing trade tensions—proof, if any were needed, that America’s mood swings are now pegged to Trump’s tariff meter.
Concerns about inflation, employment, and personal finances eased for now. But the labor market component slipped again, suggesting Americans feel better about the future, but less sure about keeping their jobs in it.
Tech came roaring back, even as Apple (AAPL +2.5%) remained in Trump’s penalty box. The president publicly grumbled about CEO Tim Cook skipping his Middle East trip, then followed up with a not-so-veiled threat: 25% tariffs on iPhones made abroad. It’s the latest twist in a once-cozy relationship, now frostier than a 2 a.m. FaceTime from Mar-a-Lago. Cook may soon need to choose between assembling in Texas or assembling a really good excuse.
It’s not “Made in the USA,” exactly, but close enough to pacify the president. Screwing together a few iPhones in Texas offers a compromise between full reshoring’s $3,500 fantasy price tag and the political need to slap a flag on something. “Assembled” is the new Mom and apple pie—if Mom baked with apples that came shrink-wrapped from Zhengzhou.
So, the market found a narrative it could love for a day: tariffs delayed, rates down, consumers marginally encouraged. It may not be stable footing, but in 2025, a hopscotch path is the only path.
— Jason Kelly
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