Stock Market Today: Stocks get boost from soft inflation after U.S.-China tariff rally
Stocks are set for a early-opening boost following a soft April inflation report.
U.S. equity futures were mixed in early Tuesday trading as investors hit pause on one of the strongest rallies of the year and parsed details of a key CPI inflation reading prior to the opening bell.
Updated at 8:42 AM EDT
Easing, for now ...
U.S. consumer price inflation eased again last month, suggesting little impact from President Donald Trump's tariff regime heading into the start of the second quarter.
The Commerce Department said its headline Consumer Price Index for April was pegged at an annual rate of 2.3%, down from the 2.4% pace recorded in March and the consensus forecast from analysts on Wall Street.
So-called core inflation, which strips out volatile components like food and energy, held at an annual rate of 2.8%, matching both the Wall Street forecast and March's 2.8% pace.
stocks pared some of their earlier declines following the data release, with futures contracts tied to the S&P 500 indicating an opening-bell gain of around 10 points and the Nasdaq priced for a 90-point gain.
The Dow was called 90 points lower thanks in part to the 9% slump for index heavyweight UnitedHealth Group (UNH) .
CPI +0.2% m/m in April; cooler than consensus estimate of +0.3% … core also up by +0.2% pic.twitter.com/3iII9O2ItS— Kevin Gordon (@KevRGordon) May 13, 2025
Stock Market Today
Stocks ended firmly higher on Monday with the S&P 500 rising 3.26%, its strongest single-day gain in six weeks, following a weekend deal between the U.S. and China to pause reciprocal tariffs for at least three months.
The benchmark also closed north of its 200-day moving average, a key performance indicator, for the first time since March.
