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Indexes up: Dow 0.2%, S&P 500 0.2%, Nasdaq 0.4%
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Trump's tariff announcement at 4:00 p.m. ET
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ADP, factory orders beat estimates
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Tesla turns higher after reports Musk to leave govt role
(Updates with midday trading prices)
By Sruthi Shankar and Pranav Kashyap
April 2 (Reuters) -
U.S. stock indexes recovered from morning losses to trade
modestly higher on Wednesday as investors awaited U.S. President
Donald Trump's sweeping tariff announcements.
Volatility has gripped U.S. markets in recent weeks as
investors speculate about the scope of tariffs and their impact
on the global economy, inflation and corporate earnings.
Trump has kept the world guessing on the details of the
tariff plans, which were still being formulated ahead of a White
House Rose Garden announcement ceremony scheduled for 4 p.m. ET
(2000 GMT).
The president has said that his reciprocal tariffs aim
to equalize the comparatively lower U.S. tariff rates with those
imposed by other nations. But the format of the duties was
unclear, with reports that Trump was considering a 20% universal
tariff.
"You're seeing a market that is beginning to slowly
rally. That is a read that the news may be more positive than
expected," said Eric Schiffer, chief executive officer of the
Patriarch Organization.
"We'll have continued volatility in the medium term. It
will be about how trade partners decide to counter and what the
impact of all this is on supply chains and profits."
Tesla
jumped 3%, reversing earlier declines after
Politico reported that Trump has told members of his Cabinet and
other close contacts that his billionaire ally Elon Musk will
soon step back from his government role.
The stock fell as much as 6.4% earlier after the EV
maker reported a 13% drop in first-quarter
deliveries
.
At 11:58 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average
rose 66.07 points, or 0.15%, to 42,054.12, the S&P 500
gained 12.76 points, or 0.22%, to 5,645.68 and the Nasdaq
Composite gained 76.32 points, or 0.44%, to 17,526.21.
The domestically focused Russell 2000 index recouped earlier losses to climb 0.8%.
U.S. stocks have come under sharp selling pressure this year
due to uncertainty around tariffs and concerns about aggressive
AI spending by tech firms. The benchmark S&P 500 and the
tech-heavy Nasdaq fell 10% from their record highs last
month, confirming a correction.
The S&P 500 shed 4.6% in the first quarter, its biggest
three-month decline since July 2022.
On the data front, U.S. private payrolls growth
accelerated in March and new orders for U.S.-manufactured goods
increased solidly in February, likely as businesses front-loaded
orders ahead of tariffs.
Focus, however, is on the crucial monthly non-farm payrolls
data as well as Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's speech on
Friday for insights into the health of the U.S. economy and
trajectory of interest rates.
Traders are betting on three rate cuts from the Fed this
year but the prospect of tariff-induced inflationary pressures
has clouded the outlook.
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.36-to-1 ratio
on the NYSE and by a 1.52-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P 500 posted 14 new 52-week highs and 10 new lows,
while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 18 new highs and 244 new
lows.