Wall Street Friday: Trade Talks & Tariff Tightrope

Fresh news and strategies for traders. SPY Trader episode #1153. Hey there, Spy Traders! It's your pal, Penny Pincher, comin' at ya live from the West Coast. It's 12 pm on Friday, May 9th, 2025, and the market's doin' its thing. Let's dive into what's shakin' those Wall Street trees today. So, overall, the market's lookin' kinda green. The Dow's up about 0.6%, NASDAQ's rockin' at a 1% gain, and the S&P is sittin' pretty at about 0.6% too. But hold your horses, folks, 'cause everyone's kinda holdin' their breath waitin' for these USChina trade talks this weekend in Switzerland. Sectorwise, Consumer Discretionary and Energy are poppin' bottles, while Consumer Staples is feelin' a little blue. Industrials and Tech are chuggin' along nicely, but Real Estate, Healthcare, Utilities, and especially Telecommunications are takin' a bit of a nosedive today. Now, for the juicy news! Trump's floated the idea of dialin' back those China tariffs, from a crazy 145% down to 80%. That could be a big deal, so keep an eye on those trade talks. We also hammered out a trade deal with the UK, so good news there! The Fed decided to keep interest rates steady, but Powell's mentioned that tariffs are makin' the inflation and unemployment monsters a little scarier. They wanna see more data before makin' any big moves. Earnings season's still in full swing, and about 76% of the S&P 500 companies are beatin' expectations. Not too shabby! Macrowise, things are lookin' a little…iffy. The economy's probably gonna slow down this year. We're talkin' maybe 2.6% growth, but some folks are even predictin' a nosedive to 1.3%. Inflation could creep up to 4% next year because of all these tariffs. Unemployment might tick up towards 5%. People are still spendin', but they might get a little stingier if prices keep climbin'. And the government? Well, they're still spendin' more than they're makin'. Companywise, Tesla's havin' a party, up over 5%! Megacap tech is a mixed bag. Apple, Amazon, and Broadcom are inchin' up, but Microsoft, Nvidia, Alphabet, and Meta are all feelin' a little down. Expedia's gettin' hammered after missin' their earnings. Ouch! So, what's Penny think? Things are a little shaky, folks. Trade and tariffs are the big wildcards here, and inflation could be a problem. Some folks are even whisperin' about a possible recession. Here's my two cents: Diversify, diversify, diversify! Keep a close eye on those trade talks, 'cause they're gonna move the market. Maybe think about puttin' some money in those 'safe' sectors like consumer staples and healthcare, though keep in mind consumer staples is currently down. Pay attention to those earnings reports, especially how companies are handlin' those tariffs. And keep an ear out for what the Fed's sayin'. That's all for today, folks! Keep your eye on the ball, don't panic, and remember, even a penny saved is a penny earned! Penny Pincher, out!