The S&P 500 ended a volatile session nearly flat on Friday as the U.S. President slammed China before sounding upbeat about reaching a trade deal, but the benchmark index closed out its best month since November 2023. The Nasdaq also registered its biggest monthly percentage gain since November 2023.
The S&P 500 .SPX lost 0.48 points, to end at 5,911.69 points, while the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC lost 62.10 points, or 0.32%, to 19,113.77. The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI rose 54.34 to 42,270.07. May was a volatile month for stocks as the President’s erratic trade policies kept investors on edge, but his softening tariff stance, along with upbeat earnings and tame inflation data, helped the S&P 500 rebound from its April lows.
Investors on Friday also digested data showing U.S. consumer spending increased 2.1% year-on-year in April after advancing 2.3% in March. The Federal Reserve tracks the PCE price measures for its 2% inflation target. Traders maintained bets that the U.S. central bank would cut its target for short-term borrowing costs in September. While the effective U.S. tariff on imports was between 2% and 3% before the new administration took office, it stands at about 15%, according to Oxford Research estimates. This would have been lowered to about 6% by a trade court ruling, but an appeals court’s emergency stay has kept the higher rate in place for now.
Among other big movers on the day, Ulta Beauty ULTA.O jumped after the cosmetics retailer raised its annual profit forecast after beating quarterly results.
Caroline.valetkevitch@thomsonreuters.com)
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