Stocks moved sharply higher Thursday morning following news that the U.S. has reached a trade agreement with the United Kingdom, as President Donald Trump said that more deals are on the way.
The S&P 500 and tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite were recently up 1.4% and 1.8%, respectively, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 1.3%. Stocks were coming off a winning session on Wednesday after two consecutive days of declines as investors looked for signs of progress on trade deals amid hopes that Trump will soften his stance on tariffs.
Trump said in a social post this morning that the agreement with the U.K. is “full and comprehensive.” The president also said in the post that “many other deals” are in “serious stages of negotiations.” Speaking later during a press conference to discuss the U.K. agreement, Trump said that he expects to reach a deal with the European Union.
The trade deal with the U.K. comes ahead of highly anticipated talks, scheduled for Saturday in Switzerland, between U.S. and Chinese officials. The two countries have imposed tariffs of more than 100% on one another, effectively halting trade and sparking concerns about the likelihood of product shortages and rising inflation. During the Thursday morning press conference, Trump said that he expects the discussions with China will be substantive and that tariffs on Chinese imports could be lowered.
Shares of the world’s largest technology companies were higher across the board, led by a gain of nearly 5% for EV maker Tesla (TSLA).
Alphabet (GOOG) was up 2.5% after plunging more than 7% yesterday following reports that Apple is looking to add AI-powered search options to its Safari browser, a move that could erode Google’s share of the online search market. Apple (AAPL) shares gained more than 1%.
Chipmakers Nvidia (NVDA) and Broadcom (AVGO), which surged late yesterday on news that the Trump administration plans to ease trade restrictions on semiconductors, were each about 1%. Microsoft (MSFT), Amazon (AMZN) and Meta Platforms (META) each advanced about 2%.
Among other noteworthy tech sector movers, shares of AppLovin (APP) jumped 14% after the adtech company late Wednesday announced the sale of its mobile game business alongside first quarter earnings that topped analysts’ expectations. Arm Holdings (ARM) was down 5% after the chip designer issued an outlook that missed expectations on the top and bottom lines.
Crypto-related stocks were moving higher this morning as the price of bitcoin surged above $100,000 for the first time since February. Strategy (MSTR), the world’s largest corporate holder of bitcoin, was up 7%, while crypto exchange Coinbase Global (COIN) added 6% and bitcoin miner MARA Holdings (MARA) jumped 8%. Bitcoin was at $101,200 recently, up from an overnight low of $96,100.
Gold futures were down 1.3% at $3,350 an ounce, losing ground for the second straight day, while West Texas Intermediate futures, the U.S. crude oil benchmark, rose 3% to $59.75 per barrel, continuing a volatile run for the commodity amid economic uncertainty.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury note, which affects borrowing costs on all sorts of loans, notably mortgages, rose to 4.33% from 4.28% at yesterday’s close. The U.S. dollar index, which measures the performance of the dollar against a basket of foreign currencies, was up 0.7% at 100.35.
Cleveland-Cliffs Stock Dives as Steelmaker Idles Some Plants
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Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF) shares tumbled Thursday, a day after the steelmaker announced it was cutting back on production and capital spending in an effort to improve operations.
The company said it will “fully or partially idle six facilities to optimize its footprint, reposition away from loss-making operations, and release excess working capital.” The moves are expected to save more than $300 million a year, with additional savings in overhead and improved productivity at its other factories.
In addition, Cleveland-Cliffs will no longer be investing in the development of a transformer production facility in Weirton, W.Va., “due to changes in scope from the project partner that no longer meet Cliffs’ investment requirements.”
CEO Lourenco Goncalves said that the company’s first-quarter results were hurt by “non-core assets and the lagging effect of lower index prices in late 2024 and early 2025.” Goncalves noted that the steps being taken are aimed at streamlining the business and enhancing efficiency.
In the quarter, Cleveland-Cliffs reported an adjusted net loss of $0.92, with revenue up 7% year-over-year to $4.63 billion. Analysts polled by Visible Alpha expected a net loss of $0.83 on revenue of $4.62 billion.
In January, CNBC reported that the company was teaming up with rival Nucor (NUE) for a potential bid for U.S. Steel (X), whose $14.1 billion buyout by Nippon Steel was blocked by President Joe Biden.
Cleveland-Cliffs shares were down 16% in recent trading. Including today’s sharp declines, shares of Cleveland-Cliffs have lost about a quarter of their value this year.
Anheuser-Busch Inbev Stock Hits 52-Week High
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U.S.-listed shares of Anheuser-Busch InBev (BUD) gained Thursday as the world’s biggest beer brewer easily beat earnings estimates as lower costs offset falling volumes.
The maker of brands including Budweiser and Michelob reported first-quarter net profit of $2.15 billion, nearly double what it was a year ago. Analysts surveyed by Visible Alpha were looking for $1.66 billion. Revenue rose 1.5% year-over-year to $13.63 billion, short of forecasts.
AB InBev’s selling, general, and administrative expenses (SG&A) decreased nearly 6% to $4.19 billion. The company pointed to disciplined resource allocation, overhead management, and optimization of capital expenditures for the decline.
Beer sales declined in the U.S., Europe, and China, but they gained in Latin America and South Africa. Total beer and non-beer volume dipped 2.2%, which the company blamed on “calendar-related factors such as cycling the leap year selling-day benefit in 1Q24 and Easter shipment phasing.”
CEO Michel Doukeris said that the consistent execution of AB InBev’s strategy “drove a solid start to the year and reinforces our confidence in delivering on our outlook for 2025.”
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AB Inbev stock was up 2% at $66.90 in recent trading, after hitting a 52-week high of $67.55 this morning.
Shopify Stock Sinks on Surprise Q1 Loss
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Shares of Shopify (SHOP) tumbled Thursday morning as the e-commerce platform reported a surprise net loss for the first quarter.
The company said $74.75 billion in gross merchandise value was sold through its platform in the quarter, about $150 million less than analysts had expected, per Visible Alpha. Shopify generated $2.36 billion in revenue, just above what analysts had expected.
Shopify’s adjusted earnings per share (EPS) came in at $0.25, a penny below the analyst consensus, but the company’s surprise net loss was likely more of an issue with investors. Analysts had expected EPS of $0.17, but Shopify reported a net loss of $0.53 per share as it incurred a more than $900 million loss on its equity investments.
Shopify projects second-quarter revenue to grow at a mid-twenties percentage rate year-over-year, while gross profit is expected to grow at a high-teens percentage.
Shopify shares were down 6% shortly after opening bell Thursday. The stock entered the day down 11% since the start of the year.
Watch These Alphabet Levels After Yesterday’s Slide
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Alphabet (GOOGL) shares moved higher in premarket trading after tumbling Wednesday following reports that Apple (AAPL) is looking to add AI-powered search options to its Safari browser, and that they could eventually replace standard search engines like Google’s.
The two tech giants have a longstanding partnership that sees Alphabet’s Google pay Apple an estimated $20 billion a year to make its search engine the default option on Safari in exchange for the iPhone maker receiving a cut of Google’s ad revenue through the browser. The news heightened concerns that AI is chipping away at Google’s bread-and-butter online search business.
Alphabet shares have slumped 20% since the start of the year through Wednesday’s close, in part over concerns that an economic slowdown could hit revenue as ad spending is reined in. The stock was up about 2% at around $156 shortly before the opening bell, after falling more than 7% yesterday.
Following an ominous death cross surfacing on the chart last month, Alphabet shares staged a countertrend rally to form a rising wedge, a bearish pattern that indicates a continuation of the stock’s move lower.
Indeed, that move looks to have started in Wednesday’s trading session, with the price breaking down below the pattern’s lower trendline on above-average daily volume. Moreover, the drop coincided with the relative strength index (RSI) plunging below the 50 threshold, signaling accelerating selling momentum.
Investors should monitor major support levels on Alphabet’s chart around $141 and $131, while also watching major resistance levels near $165 and $182.
Read the full technical analysis piece here.
Major Index Futures Point to Higher Open
3 hr 47 min ago
Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were up 0.7%.
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S&P 500 futures rose 0.9%.
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Nasdaq 100 futures added 1.2%.
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