Stocks Go Higher as Tariffs Thwarted

Futures tied to Canada's main stock index rose on Thursday, as investors cheered a U.S. court's ruling to block U.S. President Donald Trump's April 2 tariffs and strong earnings by domestic banks.The TSX Composite Index gained 14.45 points Wednesday to reinforce Tuesday’s all-time record, at 26,283.45. June futures gained 0.3% Thursday. The Court of International Trade on Wednesday found Trump had overstepped his authority by imposing duties on trading partners.The Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reported a rise in second-quarter profit, led by its capital markets business.Royal Bank of Canada posted a jump in second-quarter profit, as the country's biggest bank benefited from the acquisition of HSBC's domestic business and the performance of its wealth management business.On the economic front, Statistics Canada said the number of employees receiving pay and benefits from their employer—measured as "payroll employment" in the Survey of Employment, Payrolls and Hours—decreased by 54,100 (-0.3%) in March, following a decline of 40,200 (-0.2%) in February.ON BAYSTREET The TSX Venture Exchange let go of 0.51 points to close Wednesday at 702.40.ON WALLSTREET Stock futures advanced on early Thursday after a federal court knocked down President Donald Trump’s “reciprocal” tariffs. Solid earnings from artificial intelligence heavyweight Nvidia also buoyed the market.Futures for the 30-stock index leaped 154 points, or 0.4%, to 42,325Futures for the S&P 500 index gathered 52 points 5,954.75.Futures for the NASDAQ sprinted 289.25 points, or 1.4%, to 21,670.25. The U.S. Court of International Trade ruled on Wednesday night that Trump overstepped his authority when he imposed his “reciprocal” tariffs. The court ordered that the challenged tariff orders be vacated.The April 2 announcement of Trump’s duties, the president’s changing approach toward trade policy, as well as inflation fears fueled by the prospect of the tariffs, roiled markets last month. Some companies have also highlighted the levies and dialed back their forecasts, pointing to uncertainty around trade policy and the impact on the consumer.For now, the judges’ decision appears to have allayed investors’ worries. However, this development can also raise concerns that U.S. trade negotiations with foreign countries could be drawn out into later in the year than previously anticipated.Elsewhere, Nvidia shares jumped more than 5% in after-hours trading. The chipmaker exceeded expectations on the top and bottom lines in the first quarter, as its data center business recorded year-over-year growth of 73%.In Japan, the Nikkei 225 index spiked 1.2% Thursday, while in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng jumped 1.4%. Oil prices acquired 24 cents to $62.08 U.S. a barrel. Gold prices picked up $4.40 to $3,299.30 U.S. an ounce.