Here are five key things investors need to know to start the trading day:
1. High hopes
Markets posted gains on Wednesday, but the major stock indexes closed well off their highs. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 419.59 points, or 1.07%, after previously trading more than 1,100 points higher. The S&P 500, meanwhile, climbed 1.67%, and the Nasdaq Composite rallied 2.50%. All three indexes posted back-to-back gains on hopes that U.S.-China trade tensions could soon ease. Follow live market updates.
2. Google mapping your commute
Signage at the the Google headquarters in Mountain View, California, on Oct. 10, 2024.
David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Google is telling some remote employees that they have to go back to the office three days a week or they’ll lose their jobs. Several units within the company have told staffers, including some who were previously approved for remote work, that they need to start going to the closest office for a hybrid work schedule, according to internal documents viewed by CNBC. The announcement comes as the tech company has been downsizing various teams in an effort to streamline operations and prioritize spending on artificial intelligence and other initiatives.
3. Tariffs
An employee works on a vehicle crankshaft production line at a factory which produces engine parts in Binzhou, in eastern China’s Shandong province on March 14, 2025.
Str | Afp | Getty Images
President Donald Trump is considering exemptions for automakers from some tariffs, the White House told CNBC’s Eamon Javers. That follows the Financial Times reporting that the administration plans to exempt tariffs on auto parts from China. Earlier in the day, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said “there is an opportunity for a big deal here” on trade issues with China and encouraged the two countries to work together. But China responded by saying there “are absolutely no negotiations on the economy and trade between China and the U.S.”
4. Cut it out
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737 MAX8 taxis after arriving at San Diego International Airport on March 4, 2025 in San Diego, California.
Kevin Carter | Getty Images News | Getty Images
Corporate earnings season is in full swing and cuts are the ongoing theme. Southwest Airlines cut flights for the second half of this year as more signs point to weaker domestic bookings. The company is also not reaffirming its guidance for earnings before interest and taxes for 2025 and 2026. PepsiCo, meanwhile, cut its earnings forecast, citing new tariffs, economic volatility and a more cautious consumer. Comcast, however, beat earnings estimates even as it continues losing broadband customers who are cutting the cord.
Disclosure: Comcast owns NBCUniversal, the parent company of CNBC.
5. Corporate donations
US President Donald Trump gestures next to Vice President J.D. Vance as the crowd chants “Fight, fight, fight” during the inaugural parade inside Capital One Arena, in Washington, DC, on Jan. 20, 2025.
Jim Watson | AFP | Getty Images
Trump’s fund for his inauguration festivities raised a record $239 million — and corporations contributed millions to the effort. That includes some of the nation’s largest companies, like General Motors, BlackRock and Meta. Some companies that hadn’t contributed to such funds in a decade, like Target, McDonald’s and Delta Air Lines, also chipped in. Now, three months later, businesses have been rocked by Trump’s tariff policy and resulting consumer caution. CNBC took a look at seven industries that gave money to the fund and broke down which businesses are better or worse off with Trump in office. Read more here.
— CNBC’s Lisa Kailai Han, Jennifer Elias, Evelyn Cheng, Lillian Rizzo, Gabrielle Fonrouge, Annika Kim Constantino, Leslie Josephs, Ari Levy, Amelia Lucas, Melissa Repko, Hugh Son and Michael Wayland contributed to this report.
