Coca-Cola, 3M, and GM Lead Gains While Tech Stocks Slip on China Uncertainty
The Dow Jones Industrial Average surged to a new intraday record on Tuesday, climbing more than 300 points as upbeat corporate earnings fueled optimism across Wall Street. The 30-stock index was last higher by 312 points, or 0.7%, while the S&P 500 added 0.2%. The Nasdaq Composite, however, slipped 0.1%, weighed down by weakness in major tech names.
Blue-chip stalwarts Coca-Cola and 3M led the Dow higher, rising 4% and 6% respectively after both companies beat Wall Street’s profit forecasts. General Motors soared 15% as the automaker raised its full-year guidance and said it expects to offset more than a third of the cost impact from President Donald Trump’s tariffs.
“This is a good sign that big multinational stocks are posting better than expected results,” said Louis Navellier, founder and chief investment officer at Navellier & Associates. “The third-quarter earnings season is off to a strong start, and we could see a great year-end rally.”
Tech Stocks Retreat Ahead of U.S.-China Meeting
While traditional industrial and consumer names outperformed, technology shares lagged after President Trump raised doubts about his upcoming meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. “Maybe it won’t happen,” Trump told reporters, unsettling markets already wary of trade friction.
Big tech names slipped on the comments: Alphabet and Broadcom each fell around 2%, while Nvidia dropped nearly 1%. Analysts said investors are hoping for friendlier trade conditions with China that could ease tariff pressures on the semiconductor sector.
Strong Start to Earnings Season
The broader market rally is being underpinned by strong corporate results. According to FactSet, more than 75% of S&P 500 companies that have reported so far have exceeded expectations.
Major players including Netflix and Tesla are set to report later this week, with investors eyeing the results from the “Magnificent Seven” — Apple, Amazon, Alphabet, Meta, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Tesla — which are projected to post 14.9% year-over-year earnings growth, compared to 6.7% for the rest of the index.
“If the Mag Seven can deliver on elevated profit expectations, markets could see another leg higher,” said Anthony Saglimbene, chief market strategist at Ameriprise Financial. “Profit outperformance combined with strong AI tailwinds could be greeted favorably as we move through the earnings season.”
Markets Eye Inflation Data and Fed’s Next Move
Adding to market optimism is the growing belief that the Federal Reserve will deliver another quarter-point rate cut at its late October meeting. Investors are also awaiting Friday’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) report, which could provide further clues on inflation trends.
Some analysts, however, are skeptical about the data’s reliability due to the ongoing government shutdown. “Skeptics like me are going to be focused on how clean this data is,” said Vishal Khanduja, head of fixed income at Morgan Stanley Investment Management.
Winners of the Day
Nine S&P 500 companies reached new all-time highs on Tuesday, including Ralph Lauren, American Express, Quest Diagnostics, GE Aerospace, Jacobs Solutions, Raytheon Technologies, Laboratory Corp. of America, TE Connectivity, and Apple.
The rally reflects investor confidence in corporate resilience and steady consumer demand, even as political and economic uncertainty looms in Washington and abroad. For now, strong earnings appear to be outweighing trade worries — at least on Wall Street.
