IXIC: Nasdaq Composite Scores New Record as Traders Bet on Another Tariff Reprieve

Trump has said Aug. 1 is the date and there’ll be no going back. Can the EU and others reach a deal before the deadline? Also, earnings are here!

🔥 Seventh Record Close of 2025

• The Nasdaq Composite IXIC edged up 0.3%, or 55 points, to close Monday at 20,640.33, marking its seventh record closing high this year — no small feat given the growing wall of tariff worries.
• Even with tiny gains on the day, tech stocks once again did the heavy lifting. Chipmakers like Nvidia NVDA stepped back and let Amazon AMZN, Tesla TSLA, and Alphabet GOOGL lead the charge.
• The S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average also stayed green, up 0.1% and 0.2% respectively, as traders tiptoe into a week jam-packed with earnings and big economic data.

👊 Tariff Deadline Looms

• Markets shrugged off another round of trade threats from President Trump, who on Monday repeated that the August 1 tariff deadline is set in stone — but traders chose not to believe his words.
• Trump’s latest barrage includes “perhaps 100%” tariffs on Russian goods if a peace deal with Ukraine doesn’t materialize within 50 days. He also confirmed a 30% rate on imports from Mexico and the European Union (where euro traders also didn’t believe him).
• Investors are betting that the EU and other major trade partners may manage a last-minute breakthrough, much like the UK and Vietnam did last month, staving off the worst-case scenario for global supply chains.

🍔 Earnings Season Kicks Off

• Wall Street’s attention is about to shift fast — the second-quarter earnings parade begins Tuesday with heavyweights like J.P. Morgan JPM, Wells Fargo WFC, and Citigroup C opening the books.
• Financial stocks have performed nicely so far in 2025, clocking a 9% gain YTD, but big bank results will test whether that outperformance is built on solid footing.
• On top of that, traders are bracing for Tuesday’s inflation report, which could reshape Treasury market bets and either reinforce or challenge expectations that the Fed is on course for a rate cut in July or September.