Wall Street Ends Higher After Zelenskiy and Trump Clash
Wall Street ended higher on Friday after a choppy trading session, with Dell Technologies dipping and other tech stocks climbing after a meeting between the U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskiy ended in disaster.
Zelenskiy and Trump traded verbal blows at the White House before the world's media. This created fresh uncertainty over Ukraine's war with Russia for investors already worried about sticky U.S. inflation and a tepid economy.
The S&P 500 moved lower immediately after the clash before recovering and ending the day with a gain.
Zelenskiy left the White House without signing a much-vaunted deal between Ukraine and the U.S. over the joint development of natural resources.
Dell (DELL.N), dropped after the PC maker forecast a decline in its adjusted gross margin rate for fiscal 2026.
Peer HP Inc (HPQ.N), fell after its quarterly profit forecasts missed expectations.
Gains in Nvidia (NVDA.O), Apple (AAPL.O), and Tesla (TSLA.O), lifted the S&P 500.
According to preliminary data, the S&P 500 (.SPX), gained 91.46 points, or 1.56%, to end at 5,953.03 points, while the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC), gained 295.00 points, or 1.59%, to 18,839.42. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI), rose 600.06 points, or 1.39%, to 43,839.56.
Earlier, a Commerce Department report showed inflation rose in January in line with expectations. However, consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of the economy, dropped 0.2% after an upwardly revised 0.8% increase in December. This could complicate the Federal Reserve's deliberations on monetary policy.
Source : Reuters
