Daily Fundamental Analysis: Stocks Rise as Federal Judge Blocks Trump’s Reciprocal Tariffs

The U.S. Court of International Trade blocked President Donald Trump’s reciprocal tariffs on multiple countries, ruling he exceeded his authority under emergency powers.

The ruling impacts the president’s trade agenda, sending Dow futures up 500 points. The administration appealed to the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

Asia-Pacific markets rose Thursday after a U.S. court ruled against Trump’s reciprocal tariffs. The decision struck down a key part of his economic agenda. Major indices gained across the region: South Korea’s Kospi (+1.76%), Japan’s Nikkei 225 (+1.63%), Hong Kong’s Hang Seng (+0.84%), and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 (+0.31%). The Bank of Korea cut rates to 2.5%, as expected.

Markets await reaction in Asian chip stocks after Nvidia reported strong earnings, with data center revenue up 73% year-over-year.

US Stock Futures surged early Thursday after a court ruling against Trump’s tariffs and strong Nvidia earnings.

S&P 500 futures rose 1.66%, Nasdaq 100 futures gained 2%, and Dow futures climbed 600 points (1.42%).

The U.S. Court of International Trade ruled Trump exceeded his authority with his “reciprocal” tariffs, ordering them vacated.

Market uncertainty from April’s tariff announcement has eased following the court’s decision. Meanwhile, Nvidia shares rose 5% after hours on strong earnings, with 73% growth in data center revenue.

Wednesday saw the S&P 500, Nasdaq, and Dow all fall about 0.6%.

Major indexes are up for the week: S&P 500 1.5%, Dow 1.2%, Nasdaq 2%. May gains have been strong, with tech up 10% on AI developments from Alphabet.

The S&P 500 is up 5.7% this month, Dow 3.5%, and Nasdaq 9.5%.