Wall Street ends volatile week with modest gains amid US-China tariff standoff

After a turbulent week of wild market swings and shifting investor sentiment, Wall Street was on a steadier note with modest gains, as traders paused to reassess the global economic impact of escalating trade tensions between the U.S. and China.

The S&P 500 was 0.27% higher at 5,282.50, while the Nasdaq Composite added 0.37% and was at 16,448.22. The Dow Jones Industrial Average barely moved, inching up 5.23 points or 0.01% to 39,598.89.

Markets opened lower after China announced it would hike tariffs on U.S. imports to 125% — matching Washington’s latest tariff levels. The announcement came just weeks after the U.S. had imposed an additional 20% tariff hike on Chinese goods, intensifying the ongoing trade war.

China framed the move as a retaliatory measure, sharply criticizing the U.S. for what it called an economically meaningless escalation. “The U.S. alternately raising abnormally high tariffs on China has become a numbers game, which has no practical economic significance, and will become a joke in the history of the world economy,” China said. It added that if the U.S. continues to “substantially infringe on China’s interests,” Beijing would “resolutely counter and fight to the end.”

Despite the rhetoric, investors seemed to take a more measured approach by mid-morning, with U.S. futures swinging before settling into modest gains. Traders weighed the long-term implications of the tariff standoff against the backdrop of broader economic indicators and corporate earnings.

The measured close followed a brutal sell-off on Thursday, when the S&P 500 plunged 3.46%, the Dow lost over 1,000 points (2.5%), and the Nasdaq dropped 4.3% — all but erasing Wednesday’s massive rally. That rally had been sparked by President Trump’s announcement of a temporary 90-day pause on select reciprocal tariffs, leading to one of Wall Street’s strongest single-day performances since World War II. The S&P 500 had surged 9.5%, and the Dow soared over 2,900 points in a dramatic turnaround.