Hong Kong Keeps Interest Rates Unchanged, Tracking Fed's Decision 
SoftBank Eyes Up to $25B OpenAI Investment Amid AI Boom 
Wall Street Banks Plan to Sell $3 Billion of Elon Musk’s X Debt 
UK Economy Sees Marginal Growth Amid Tax Hikes and Business Caution 
Wall Street Futures Fluctuate as Fed Maintains Rates, Signals Extended Pause 
Bank of America Clients Pour $1.1B into US Equities Amid Sector Shifts 
U.S. Stock Futures Steady Amid Bank Earnings and Inflation Focus 
US economy grows slower than expected in Q4 
Tech Stocks Rally in Asia-Pacific as Dollar Remains Resilient 
SoftBank and OpenAI Lead $19B Investments in Stargate AI Initiative 
Trump and Modi Discuss Trade, Security, and Immigration in Call 
Tokyo Inflation Hits Near Two-Year High, BOJ Rate Hike Impact in Focus 
S&P 500 Hits Record High Amid Earnings and Trump's Davos Speech 
Bank of Japan Minutes Reveal Debate on Neutral Interest Rate Policy 
Fed keeps rates steady as strong job market, inflation cloud rate-cut outlook 
U.S. stocks closed lower on Friday as investor sentiment weakened following the White House’s announcement that President Donald Trump will implement new tariffs on Canadian, Mexican, and Chinese imports. The tariffs—25% on Canadian and Mexican goods and 10% on Chinese imports—will take effect on Saturday, adding to economic uncertainty.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 337.47 points (0.75%) to 44,544.66, the S&P 500 declined 30.64 points (0.50%) to 6,040.53, and the Nasdaq Composite lost 54.31 points (0.28%) to 19,627.44. Energy stocks led losses, with Chevron (NYSE:CVX) plunging 4.6% after weak earnings and Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) falling 2.5%.
Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) ended down 0.7%, reversing earlier gains from upbeat earnings commentary. Tech stocks faced pressure earlier in the week after China’s DeepSeek unveiled a breakthrough in AI technology.
Despite Friday’s decline, indexes posted gains for January, with the Dow up 4.7%, the S&P 500 rising 2.7%, and the Nasdaq gaining 1.6%. However, for the week, the S&P 500 lost 1%, and the Nasdaq dropped 1.6%.
Economic data released Friday reinforced expectations that the Federal Reserve will maintain interest rates for longer. Strong consumer spending and moderate inflation in December supported Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s stance that rate cuts are not imminent.
After the closing bell, Trump hinted at new tariffs related to oil and gas, set to be announced by Feb. 18. However, he provided no details on affected countries or specifics.
Declining stocks outpaced gainers on both the NYSE and Nasdaq, with U.S. exchange volume reaching 15.78 billion shares, slightly above the 20-day average.
