Dow Jones soars 741 points on robust consumer confidence

Economic data gives welcome relief to Wall Street

Lola Evans
28 May 2025, 01:45 GMT+10

Dow Jones soars 741 points on robust consumer confidence

The Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence Index jumped to 98.0, a 12.3-point increase from last month and well ahead of the Dow Jones consensus estimate of 86.0.
Tuesday’s foreign exchange markets saw the U.S. dollar gaining ground against the major currencies.
One of the stocks going against the trend Tuesday was the president's own stock Trump Media, which dived around 10 percent .

NEW YORK, New York - Strong economic data jump-started U.S. stocks and the dollar Tuesday, a welcome reprieve after weeks of pressure triggered by the president's trade tariffs.

The Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index jumped to 98.0, a 12.3-point increase from last month and well ahead of the Dow Jones consensus estimate of 86.0.

"Consumer confidence improved in May after five consecutive months of decline," Stephanie Guichard, Senior Economist, Global Indicators at The Conference Board said Tuesday. "The rebound was already visible before the May 12 US-China trade deal but gained momentum afterwards."

"The monthly improvement was largely driven by consumer expectations as all three components of the Expectations Index, business conditions, employment prospects, and future income, rose from their April lows," Guichard said..

One of the stocks going against the trend Tuesday was the president's own stock Trump Media, which dived around 10 percent following an announcement the company was raising $2.5 billion to invest in bitcoin. Fifty institutions have entered into subscription agreements for the $1.5 billion in common stock and $1 billion in convertible notes, the company said. Trump Media's shares fell $2.58 or 10.05 percent on the day, to close at $23.05. Mr Trump, through a trust owns 114 million shares, worth $2.63 billion at the close of trading Tuesday.

Following are the closing quotes for the key U.S. stock indices on Tuesday:

Standard and Poor's 500 (^GSPC) jumped 118.72 points, or 2.05 percent, closing at 5,921.54, marking its best day in months. Trading volume reached 2.821 billion shares.
Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) climbed 740.58 points, or 1.78 percent, finishing at 42,343.65, with 496.036 million shares traded.
Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) outperformed, soaring 461.96 points, or 2.47 percent, to 19,199.16, fueled by a tech sector rebound. Volume hit 7.885 billion shares.

U.S. Dollar Strengthens Against Major Currencies Amid Shifting Market Sentiment

Tuesday's foreign exchange markets saw the U.S. dollar gaining ground against the major currencies, with the euro and commodity-linked currencies facing the most downward pressure, however none more so than the Japanese yen.

Key Currency Movements

EUR/USD (Euro / US Dollar) fell to 1.1337, declining 0.39 percent as investors weighed mixed economic signals from the Eurozone.
USD/JPY (US Dollar / Japanese Yen) surged to 144.24, climbing 0.99 percent, supported by widening US-Japan yield differentials.
GBP/USD (British Pound / US Dollar) dipped to 1.3511, down 0.34 percent, amid cautious trading ahead of UK economic data releases.
USD/CHF (US Dollar / Swiss Franc) strengthened to 0.8270, gaining 0.75 percent, as the Swiss franc lost its safe-haven appeal.

Commodity Currencies Under Pressure

AUD/USD (Australian Dollar / US Dollar) dropped to 0.6446, falling 0.59 percent, as risk sentiment weakened.
NZD/USD (New Zealand Dollar / US Dollar) slid to 0.5948, down 0.83 percent, marking one of the day's steepest declines among major pairs.
USD/CAD (US Dollar / Canadian Dollar) rose to 1.3800, up 0.48 percent, as oil price volatility weighed on the Canadian dollar.

Market Drivers

The dollar's strength was fueled by expectations of prolonged Federal Reserve policy tightening, while softer economic data from Europe and China weighed on risk-sensitive currencies. Analysts suggest further volatility ahead as traders await key central bank signals, and the outcome of trade negotiations.

Global Stock Markets Finish Mostly Higher on Tuesday

Global stock markets delivered a strong performance on Tuesday, with several major indices posting gains while a lesser number retreated amid varying economic signals. The Cairo bourse made the largest gain.

Canada

The S&P/TSX Composite (^GSPTSE) gained 195.87 points, or 0.75 percent, closing at 26,269.00, supported by strength in energy and financial stocks. Trading volume was 289.022 million shares.

UK and Europe

The FTSE 100 (^FTSE) in London climbed 60.08 points, or 0.69 percent, to close at 8,778.05, buoyed by strong performances in the financial and energy sectors.

Germany's DAX (^GDAXI) rose 198.84 points, or 0.83 percent, finishing at 24,226.49, supported by positive corporate earnings.

In France the CAC 40 (^FCHI) bucked the trend, dipping slightly by 1.34 points, or 0.02 percent, to settle at 7,826.79.

The broader EURO STOXX 50 (^STOXX50E) gained 20.12 points, or 0.37 percent, closing at 5,415.45, while the Euronext 100 (^N100) added 3.91 points, or 0.25 percent, ending at 1,591.34.

Belgium's BEL 20 (^BFX) advanced 18.04 points, or 0.40 percent, to 4,510.49.

Asia-Pacific

In China the SSE Composite (000001.SS) slipped 6.15 points, or 0.18 percent, to 3,340.69, as investors remained cautious ahead of key economic data.

Japan's Nikkei 225 (^N225) rose 192.58 points, or 0.51 percent, to 37,724.11, supported by a weaker yen lifting export stocks.

In Hong Kong the Hang Seng Index (^HSI) rose 99.66 points, or 0.43 percent, to 23,381.99, while Singapore's STI Index (^STI) gained 20.49 points, or 0.53 percent, closing at 3,896.09.

In Australia the S&P/ASX 200 (^AXJO) climbed 46.60 points, or 0.56 percent, to 8,407.60, and the All Ordinaries (^AORD) added 42.70 points, or 0.50 percent, ending at 8,631.50.

India's S&P BSE SENSEX (^BSESN) fell sharply by 624.82 points, or 0.76 percent, to 81,551.63, weighed down by profit-taking in banking stocks.

In Indonesia the IDX Composite (^JKSE) edged up 10.61 points, or 0.15 percent, to 7,198.97, while Malaysia's FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (^KLSE) dropped 8.14 points, or 0.53 percent, to 1,526.16.

New Zealand's S&P/NZX 50 (^NZ50) rose 35.11 points, or 0.28 percent, to 12,582.33, but South Korea's KOSPI (^KS11) slipped 7.18 points, or 0.27 percent, to 2,637.22.

In Taiwan the TWSE Index (^TWII) declined 200.03 points, or 0.93 percent, to 21,336.54, marking one of the day's steepest losses in the region.

Middle East & Africa

Israel's TA-125 (^TA125.TA) gained 10.07 points, or 0.38 percent, to 2,695.07, while Egypt's EGX 30 (^CASE30) surged 474.90 points, or 1.49 percent, to 32,397.40, boosted by strong foreign inflows.

South Africa's Top 40 USD Net TRI Index (^JN0U.JO) dipped slightly by 5.89 points, or 0.11 percent, to 5,174.23.