US close: Stocks close higher on trade talk hopes

(Sharecast News) - US stocks finished higher on Tuesday as optimism rose that Beijing and Washington are making progress in their pivotal trade talks, though gains were only modest ahead of key inflation data due out the following session.

The Dow gained 0.3%, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq both rose 0.6%, with the latter two indices finishing at highs not seen since 20 February.

Markets had opened in a subdued fashion, but gains were extended after Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said trade talks with China were "going well", though another day of discussions were still expected.

The talks come amid renewed tensions between both nations, despite both agreeing to temporarily slash duties on one another in May. Critical minerals, which China slapped export restrictions on in April following Trump's so-called "Liberation Day" tariff announcement, will be central to discussions.

"A speech by US President Trump at 9pm BST may again trigger a rise in volatility ahead of Wednesday's widely anticipated inflation data. It'll determine whether a 25 basis point July Fed rate cut remains on the table," said Axel Rudolph, senior technical analyst at IG.

On the macro front, the National Federation of Independent Business' small business optimism index increased from 95.8 in April to 98.8 in May, the highest reading in three months and ahead of forecasts of 95.9.

Some 18% of small business owners reported taxes as their single most important problem, while 14% of owners reported that inflation was their single most important concern. Owners expecting business conditions to improve rose 10 points month-on-month to 25%.

"Although optimism recovered slightly in May, uncertainty is still high among small business owners. While the economy will continue to stumble along until the major sources of uncertainty are resolved, owners reported more positive expectations on business conditions and sales growth", said NFIB Chief Economist Bill Dunkelberg.

Market movers

Ride-hailing giant Uber fell despite the news that it has teamed up with automated driving tech firm Wayve to launch the first-ever public-road trial of autonomous vehicles in London. The UK is currently the largest market where Uber has announced an intention to pilot self-driving cars, which marks a "significant step forward in bringing autonomous vehicles to the streets of Europe at scale", the companies said in a joint statement.

Retailer Casey's General Stores surged as fourth-quarter profits smashed expectations, though revenues came in a little shy of forecasts.

US-listed shares of TSMC rose as the chipmaker's revenues for May jumped 40% over last year.

Dow Jones - Risers

Intel Corp. (INTC) $22.11 7.95%

Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $30.70 4.47%

Nike Inc. (NKE) $63.87 3.16%

Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $118.73 2.65%

Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $81.35 2.55%

Chevron Corp. (CVX) $143.35 1.84%

International Business Machines Corporation (CDI) (IBM) $276.24 1.53%

Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $293.43 1.19%

Visa Inc. (V) $370.73 1.11%

Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $44.12 1.08%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $262.92 -1.81%

Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $268.22 -1.48%

McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $300.35 -1.45%

Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $65.15 -1.14%

Boeing Co. (BA) $215.73 -0.82%

American Express Co. (AXP) $299.54 -0.67%

Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $470.92 -0.39%

Walmart Inc. (WMT) $97.32 -0.13%

S&P 500 - Risers

Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR) $11.39 29.52%

Intel Corp. (INTC) $22.11 7.95%

Helmerich & Payne Inc. (HP) $18.89 7.27%

Perrigo Company plc (PRGO) $27.58 5.41%

Celanese Corp. (CE) $59.40 4.38%

Eli Lilly and Company (LLY) $807.30 4.34%

Kohls Corp. (KSS) $9.40 4.33%

Whirlpool Corp. (WHR) $88.00 4.04%

Schlumberger Ltd. (SLB) $35.49 4.03%

Align Technology Inc. (ALGN) $188.07 3.95%

S&P 500 - Fallers

O'Reilly Automotive Inc. (ORLY) $91.71 -93.20%

J. M. Smucker Co. (SJM) $94.41 -15.59%

NRG Energy Inc. (NRG) $148.68 -4.11%

General Electric Co. (GE) $242.01 -3.74%

Arista Networks Inc. (ANET) $93.70 -3.20%

Universal Health Services Inc. (UHS) $172.54 -2.94%

Gilead Sciences Inc. (GILD) $110.09 -2.58%

H&R Block Inc. (HRB) $54.93 -2.28%

Progressive Corp. (PGR) $265.24 -2.24%

Allstate Corp (The) (ALL) $196.29 -2.23%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Qvc Group Inc Series A (QVCGA) $3.39 16.10%

Intel Corp. (INTC) $22.11 7.95%

Tesla Inc (TSLA) $326.09 5.67%

Liberty Global plc Series A (LBTYA) $9.98 4.07%

Liberty Global plc Series C (LBTYK) $10.22 3.97%

Align Technology Inc. (ALGN) $188.07 3.95%

Sirius XM Holdings Inc (SIRI) $22.81 3.68%

Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $88.09 3.66%

KLA-Tencor Corp. (KLAC) $856.59 3.29%

Charter Communications Inc. (CHTR) $406.77 3.09%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

O'Reilly Automotive Inc. (ORLY) $91.71 -93.20%

Gilead Sciences Inc. (GILD) $110.09 -2.58%

Mercadolibre Inc. (MELI) $2,396.44 -2.13%

Western Digital Corp. (WDC) $55.95 -1.88%

Netflix Inc. (NFLX) $1,203.62 -1.70%

Seagate Technology Plc (STX) $127.99 -1.67%

Ross Stores Inc. (ROST) $140.08 -1.46%

Expedia Group Inc. (EXPE) $174.06 -1.45%

Baidu Inc. (BIDU) $87.49 -1.32%

Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance Inc. (ULTA) $462.21 -1.30%