The New York Stock Exchange started off mixed as the strong performance of the 'artificial intelligence (AI) leader' NVIDIA failed to take effect and led to a decline in tech stocks. Comments from U.S. President Donald Trump regarding tariffs and new economic indicators suggesting a surge in unemployment further dampened investor sentiment.
On the 27th (local time), the Dow Jones Industrial Average, a group of blue-chip stocks, recorded 43,796.74, up 363.62 points (0.84%) compared to the previous session, as of 10:30 a.m. The large-cap benchmark S&P 500 index was up 9.14 points (0.15%) to 5,965.20, while the technology-focused Nasdaq Composite Index fell 75.76 points (0.40%) to 18,999.50.
The three major indices ended mixed the day before. The Dow Jones index turned downward after two consecutive days of rising. However, the S&P 500 index and the Nasdaq index succeeded in rebounding after narrowing their gains and overcoming four consecutive days of decline.
On this day, the market was busy assessing the impact of Trump's comments, new unemployment indicators, and NVIDIA's performance. President Trump noted on his social media platform Truth Social that the 25% tariff on Mexico and Canada would take effect on the 4th of next month, when the originally planned one-month grace period ends. He mentioned the possibility of an implementation date of April 2 during the first cabinet meeting of his second term held the day before at the White House, but explained that the lack of sufficient efforts by the two countries to prevent illegal immigration and drug influx from the U.S. was the background for enforcing the tariff.
The number of new unemployment insurance claims for the week (March 16-22) announced by the U.S. Department of Labor was 242,000, seasonally adjusted, an increase of 22,000 from the previous week. This news comes as officials from the Federal Reserve (Fed) indicated they believe the full employment goal has been achieved and are focusing on inflation.
NVIDIA reported in its earnings report released after the market closed the day before that its revenue for the fourth quarter of its fiscal year 2025 (November-January) increased by 78% year-on-year to $39.3 billion. Earnings per share (EPS) also rose by 73% from the previous year to 89 cents. Both figures exceeded market expectations of $38.2 billion and 84 cents, respectively. The revenue forecast for the current quarter of $43 billion also surpassed the market expectation of $41.7 billion.
Subsequently, during after-hours trading, NVIDIA's stock showed signs of rising, but it started the day with a nearly 4% decline. Economic media CNBC pointed out that while NVIDIA's performance reflects sustained demand, the revenue growth rate is the smallest in the last seven quarters.
Among the large technology stock group known as the 'Magnificent Seven' (M7), only Apple was on an upward trend, while NVIDIA, Microsoft, Alphabet (the parent company of Google), Tesla, Amazon, and Meta (the parent company of Facebook) opened lower.
European stock markets are also showing mixed results. The U.K. FTSE index rose by 0.19%, while the pan-European index STOXX 600 fell by 0.54%, and the German DAX index decreased by 1.22%.
International oil prices are on the rise. The price of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil for April delivery rose by 2.11% compared to the previous session to $70.07 per BARREL, while the price of Brent oil for April delivery increased by 1.92% to $73.92 per BARREL.