S&P Little Changed Amid Trump Moves on Trade

The S&P 500 ended Tuesday’s session near the flatline after President Donald Trump offered no exceptions to his Aug. 1 tariff start date.The Dow Jones Industrials slumped 165.6 points to 44,240.76.The much-broader index fell short of breakeven by 4.46 points to 6,225.52.The NASDAQ Composite edged up 5.95 points to 20,418.46.Traders had trouble keeping up with the conflicting signals from Trump on trade. Trump on Monday pushed the tariff deadline to Aug. 1 from July 9. Later that day, he said that the new deadline was “not 100% firm.”However, on Tuesday, the president posted on Truth Social that there would be no change or extensions granted to the Aug. 1 date. The same day, Trump also announced a steep 50% tariff on copper imports.Overall, at least 14 countries are set to face new duties including South Africa and Kazakhstan.However, some traders no longer forecast the latest U.S. tariffs to be as strict as initially feared, with many expecting that the worst from the trade war has now passed.On the upside, Nvidia nudged higher, closing in on a $4-trillion market cap. But banks helped weigh down the market, after HSBC adopted a “more cautious stance” on larger banks. Shares of JPMorgan and Bank of America shed 3%, while Goldman Sachs slipped 2%.Prices for the 10-year treasury were lower, raising yields to 4.41% from Monday’s 4.39%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions. Oil prices recovered 46 cents to $68.39 U.S. a barrel. Gold prices dropped $29.30 to $3,313.50 U.S. an ounce.