Gold bars to be exempt from tariffs, White House clarifies
Investing.com--S&P 500 climbed Wednesday as a rebound in tech from a wobble a day earlier and signs of progress on further trade deals offset data showing the economy created fewer private jobs than expected last month.
At 1:00 p.m ET (17:00 GMT), the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 33 points, or 0.1% and the S&P 500 index gained 0.3%, while the NASDAQ Composite added 0.9%.
Trade deal optimism as Trump announces Vietnam deal
President Donald Trump said Wednesday the United States has reached a trade agreement with Vietnam, notching a third deal ahead of July 9 deadline when the pause of reciprocal tariffs are due to resume.
A trade deal between the U.S. and China was announced last week, while Canada’s last-minute withdrawal of its digital services tax and talk that India was ready to ink a trade deal have boosted hopes for more agreements before Trump’s July 9 deadline.
Trump said he had no plans to extend the July 9 deadline and would instead notify countries of the tariff rates they will face through formal letters.
A Financial Times report stated on Tuesday that the U.S. is now pivoting to narrower, phased trade agreements in a bid to secure quick wins ahead of the deadline.
Weakness in ADP report
U.S. private payrolls dipped by 33,000 in June, weaker than expectations for growth of 99,000, reflecting a hesistancy among employers to hire and reluctance among workers to leave in a time of tariff-fueled economic uncertainty.
The ADP National Employment Report was also revised to 29,000 in May, lower than an initial reading of 37,000 -- which was itself the smallest gain since March 2023.
Job losses in professional and business services, as well as education and health care led to the drop, ADP noted in a statement on Wednesday. Leisure, hospitality and manufacturing showed an uptick.
Data on Tuesday showed that while job openings unexpectedly ticked up in May, hiring weakened, indicating a possible cooling in an otherwise resilient labor picture.
Further insight into the health of the labor market is due to come on Thursday, when the all-important nonfarm payrolls report is scheduled to be unveiled.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell stuck to his usual cautious tone in the central bank retreat in Sintra, Portugal, reiterating a strict data-dependent approach amid uncertainty given the chaotic trade policies of the Trump administration.
Unanticipated weakness in the U.S. job market could lead the Federal Reserve to begin considering possible interest rate reductions as soon as July, according to analysts at Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS).
Senate passes Trump’s fiscal bill
The Senate narrowly passed Trump’s so-called “One Big Beautiful Bill” overnight, sending it now to the House of Representatives for final approval -- with a self-imposed July 4 deadline to have the legislation on Trump’s desk looming large.
While Trump has lauded the importance of this bill, the highlight of his legislative agenda, some Republicans have balked at its potential impact on the country’s finances. Nonpartisan observers have flagged that the measures, which include the extension of Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, new tax reductions, and increased spending on defense and border security, will end up expanding the federal debt pile by over $3 trillion.
Tesla slumped on renewed Musk-Trump feud
Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) shares bounced Wednesday, after hefty losses the previous session following Trump reignited his feud with Elon Musk, accusing the Tesla CEO of benefiting excessively from government subsidies and calling for a review of his company’s federal support.
The EV manufacturer delivered 384,122 vehicles in the second quarter of 2025, according to figures released by the company on Wednesday, below the 443,956 deliveries reported in the same quarter last year, but not as weak as some had feared.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) confirmed Wednesday it is laying off as many as 9,000 employees in its latest workforce reduction effort.
The tech giant said approximately 4% of its global workforce, or roughly 9,100 employees, could be affected by the cuts. This represents the largest round of layoffs at Microsoft since 2023.
Peter Nurse, Ayushman Ojha contributed to this article