Wall Street has bounced back from last month’s tariff-driven losses, notching its longest winning streak in two decades as investor confidence grows.
All major U.S. indexes ended Friday on a high, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq each climbing 1.5% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average rising 1.4%. The surge marked the ninth consecutive day of gains—the first such streak since 2004.
Technology stocks led the charge, with Microsoft and Nvidia both gaining over 2%.
The rally followed a stronger-than-expected U.S. jobs report. The Labor Department announced that 177,000 jobs were added in April, beating analyst forecasts. Although the figure represents a slowdown from the previous month, the unemployment rate held steady at a healthy 4.2%.
Further boosting market sentiment was news that Beijing is considering Washington’s offer for trade talks, signaling a potential easing in tensions. China, currently hit with the highest import tariffs at 145%, appeared open to negotiations.
The positive data helped allay fears triggered earlier in the week by reports of a U.S. economic contraction—the first in three years.
“There is nothing to complain about here,” said Carl Weinberg, chief economist at High Frequency Economics. “You cannot find any evidence of a nascent recession in these figures.”
Seema Shah, chief global strategist at Principal Asset Management, added, “The economy will weaken in the coming months, but with this underlying momentum, the U.S. has a decent chance of averting recession—if it can step back from the tariff brink in time.”
Still, some analysts cautioned that the full impact of President Trump’s tariffs is yet to be fel
