Nasdaq climbs as stocks pop after CPI data

U.S. stocks were mostly in the green as risk-on sentiment improves amid Nvidia related news, with Nasdaq gaining.

While tariffs and trade war constraints remain, a shift in investor sentiment saw major U.S. indices open higher on Tuesday but the Dow Jones Industrial Average turned into the red, down 0.3%, while the S&P 500 added 0.21% and the Nasdaq outperformed with a 0.65% move higher.

Tech stocks led the gains as traders reacted to news around Nvidia. In particular, NVDA shares jumped 5% in premarket trading as the chipmaker reported a breakthrough in its quest to resume sales of AI chips from China.

U.S. inflation data

Stocks were also buoyed by the release of key inflation data. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the U.S. Consumer Price Index rose 0.3% month over month in June and 2.7% year over year. By comparison, consumer prices had increased 0.1% in May.

The data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics indicated consumer prices jumped above the 2.4% seen in May and the 2.6% economists had forecast. Meanwhile, core prices climbed 0.2% in June, above 0.1% seen in May. However, core CPI in June was below the 0.1% recorded in May.

“Both stock and bond markets have reacted favorably to the June U.S. CPI data, which largely aligned with, or came in slightly softer than, consensus forecasts,” said Mohamed El-Erian, the president of Queens’ College, Cambridge.

He added via X:

“While these figures will undoubtedly intensify the Administration’s pressure on the Federal Reserve to reduce rates as early as this month, they are unlikely to sway most Fed officials given their stated criteria for resuming the rate-cutting cycle that, unlike that of the ECB and the Bank of England, has been put on pause so far this year.”

Elsewhere, big banks have begun reporting earnings results for quarter two, including JPMorgan (JPM), Citigroup (C) and Wells Fargo (WFC). For instance, JPMorgan’s Q2 results were better than expected. The investment banking giant’s revenue increased 8% to $2.5 billion quarter over quarter in Q2.    

Investors will also focus on earnings results of Goldman Sachs, Johnson & Johnson, United Airlines and Netflix, Morgan Stanley, Bank of America.