President Trump sent the US stock market on a jagged round trip Wednesday after saying he had "talked about the concept of firing" the head of the Federal Reserve.
- The S&P 500 rose 19.94 points, or 0.3%, to 6,263.70 after whipping through an earlier drop and subsequent recovery.
- The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 231.49 points, or 0.5%, to 44,254.78.
- The Nasdaq composite rose 52.69 points, or 0.3%, to 20,730.49.
Stocks had been rising modestly in the morning, before news reports saying that Trump was likely to fire Fed Chair Jerome Powell quickly sent the S&P 500 down by 0.7%. When later asked directly if he was planning to fire Powell,
Trump said, "I don't rule out anything, but I think it's highly unlikely." That helped calm the market, and stocks erased their losses, though Trump added that he could still fire Powell if "he has to leave for fraud," the
AP reports. Such a move could help Wall Street get the lower interest rates it loves but would also risk a weakened Fed unable to make the unpopular moves needed to keep inflation under control.
A report on Wednesday said inflation at the wholesale level slowed to 2.3% last month, which was better than economists expected. It's an encouraging signal, but it came a day after another report suggested that Trump's tariffs are pushing up the prices US shoppers are paying for toys, apparel, and other imported products.
- ASML, the world's leading supplier of chipmaking gear, warned that it can't guarantee growth next year, after delivering an expected 15% growth in sales for 2025. Conditions still look strong for ASML's customers in the AI business, but CEO Christophe Fouquet said in a video that "the level of uncertainty is increasing, mostly due to macroeconomic and geopolitical consideration. And that includes, of course, tariffs." Shares that trade in the United States of ASML, which is based in the Netherlands, fell 8.3%.
Johnson & Johnson jumped 6.2% after the drug and medical device giant beat analysts' sales and profit targets and raised its full-year forecasts for both. CEO Joaquin Duato said it expects "game-changing approvals and submissions" in the second half of 2025 on an array of products, including for lung and bladder cancer. PNC Financial Services Group added 1% following its better-than-expected quarterly report, thanks in part to loan growth despite what CEO Bill Demchak called "an uncertain macro environment."
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GrabAGun, an online retailer of firearms and ammunition, swung sharply after combining with Colombier Acquisition Corp. II and taking its spot on the stock market under the ticker symbol "PEW." Donald Trump Jr., the son of President Trump, is joining the company's board. The stock quickly went from an early gain of 19% to a drop of 31% before moderating its loss to 23.9%, with several halts in trading along the way.
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