The S&P 500 ETF (SPY) clinched an all-time high close of $695.49 on Tuesday, while the Nasdaq 100 ETF (QQQ) finished less than 1% below its high of $637.01.
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Investors are gearing up for the first Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting of the year on Wednesday, January 28. The central bank is widely expected to hold interest rates steady, with CME’s FedWatch tool assigning 97.2% odds to the scenario.
The market remained resilient after President Trump said he would raise the tariff rate on South Korean imports to 25% from 15%, citing the country’s noncompliance with a trade agreement reached between the two sides last July.
“Because the Korean Legislature hasn’t enacted our Historic Trade Agreement, which is their prerogative, I am hereby increasing South Korean TARIFFS on Autos, Lumber, Pharma, and all other Reciprocal TARIFFS, from 15% to 25%,” Trump said in a Truth Social post.
As part of the agreement, South Korea promised to invest $350 billion in the U.S., which it has not yet done. Kim Hyun-jung, a spokesperson for South Korea’s governing Democratic Party, said five bills tied to the $350 billion investment have been submitted to the National Assembly and are currently under review.
Before Trump’s tariff announcement, Vice President JD Vance met with South Korean Prime Minister Kim Min-seok in Washington, D.C., and warned him to avoid targeting U.S. tech firms with discriminatory regulations and investigations, according to the Wall Street Journal. The discussions included Coupang (CPNG), which has faced probes following a data breach. Coupang, which is headquartered in the U.S., generates most of its revenue from South Korea.
Amid the fatal shooting of 37-year-old Alex Pretti in Minneapolis, Trump’s approval rating on immigration dropped to 39%, while his overall approval rating dropped to a second-term low of 38%. The poll, conducted by Reuters and Ipsos, also showed that 58% of respondents believed that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents have gone “too far.”
Elsewhere, the Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) fell to an 11-year low in January, coming in at 84.5 and down 9.7 points from the prior month. A reading above 100 signals optimism, while a reading below 100 points to pessimism. Consumers remain concerned about the labor market, business conditions, and the prospect of higher income.
The S&P 500 (SPX) closed with a 0.41% gain, while the Nasdaq 100 (NDX) returned 0.88%.