Wall Street holds marginal gains as buying momentum eases after recent rally

Wall Street indices are coming off of strong gains in the previous session.

Wall Street indices managed to hold on to initial gains on March 28, though the upmove remained minor following the strong surge in the previous session. Investors attempted to extend the rally in US stocks, but gains were capped by a sharp decline in consumer confidence for March.

The Conference Board’s consumer confidence index fell to 92.9, missing the Dow Jones estimate of 93.5. Meanwhile, the future expectations measure dropped to 65.2, marking a 12-year low and signalling potential recession risks. The data reflected a significant decline in consumers’ outlook on income, business conditions, and job prospects, dampening investor sentiment.

Despite the weak data, the Dow Jones Industrial Average held on to its 0.2 percent gain, while the S&P 500 also rose 0.2 percent, and the Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.4 percent.

This follows a sharp rally in the last session, driven by optimism that President Donald Trump’s reciprocal tariffs, set to take effect on 2 April, may be narrower than initially feared. Reports from The Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg News suggested that the White House might limit the scope of the tariffs. Trump later hinted that he 'may give a lot of countries breaks,' while confirming that duties on sectors like pharmaceuticals and autos remain on the horizon.

Investors welcomed this clarity on trade policies, fuelling Monday’s rally, where the Dow surged 1.4 percent, the S&P 500 gained 1.8 percent, and the Nasdaq Composite jumped 2.3 percent. These gains helped stocks recover from a volatile month, during which the S&P 500 briefly entered correction territory.

As Wall Street continues to navigate concerns over inflation and slowing economic growth, upcoming economic data and further developments on trade policies will remain key drivers for market sentiment.

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