The S&P 500 index has officially erased all of its losses for 2025, marking a major milestone in its recent strong recovery from the brink of a bear market.
On Tuesday, U.S. markets ended mixed as investors weighed easing inflation data and reduced trade tensions between the U.S. and China. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 270 points, or 0.64%, dragged down by losses in UnitedHealth Group. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 rose 0.72%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite jumped 1.61%.
Despite recent gains, both the Dow and the Nasdaq remain down for the year—by 0.95% and 1.56% respectively.
The rally followed a Monday breakthrough, when Washington and Beijing agreed to significantly lower tariffs over a 90-day period, sparking broad optimism across Wall Street. Additional momentum came Tuesday after new inflation data showed an unexpected slowdown in consumer prices, suggesting that tariff-related pressure has not translated into accelerating inflation—at least for now. April’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) posted its lowest annual increase since February 2021.
Market sentiment has shifted sharply in the past month, driven by President Trump’s pivot toward easing trade restrictions on China and the potential signing of new trade deals.
“The market fell in early April on concerns over slowing growth and recession risks caused by punitive tariffs,” said Chris Zaccarelli, Chief Investment Officer at Independent Advisor Alliance, in a note Tuesday. “But after the tariff pause and China breakthrough, stocks have rebounded—and now an inflation report that came in better than expected has removed the last major hurdle for a rally.”
Chip giant Nvidia (NVDA) surged 5.63% on Tuesday after announcing a new artificial intelligence partnership with Saudi Arabia, reinforcing its role as a key growth leader in the tech sector.
The Dow was the only major index to close in the red on Tuesday, weighed down heavily by UnitedHealth Group (UNH), which tumbled 17.8%. The healthcare giant suspended its earnings outlook, and CEO Andrew Witty announced plans to resign for personal reasons. Given the Dow’s price-weighted nature, UNH’s drop had an outsized impact on the index.
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