Wall Street ticks higher after Trump threat of new tariffs on drugs, furniture and trucks
Sep 25, 2025, 9:09 PM | Updated: Sep 26, 2025, 1:40 pm
Wall Street inched higher early Friday after U.S. President Donald Trump announced plans for new tariffs including 100% import taxes on pharmaceutical drugs, starting next week.
Futures for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq each moved 0.1% higher before the bell, while futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.2%.
Trump said Thursday onsocial media that foreign makers of furniture and cabinetry were flooding the United States with their products and that tariffs must be applied “for National Security and other reasons.”
Shares of home furnishing companies slid lower on the news. Wayfair and Williams-Sonoma each lost close to 3%, while RH fell 5%.
Trump also said foreign-made heavy trucks and parts are hurting domestic producers. However, most such trucks are either made in America or are U.S. brands made in Canada or Mexico.
Shares of U.S. truck manufacturer Paccar jumped 6%.
Shares of Dow component Boeing Co. rose more than 3% on a report that federal safety regulators will ease their oversight of the plane manufacturer.
The U.S. on Friday will release its latest on consumer spending, which includes the Federal Reserve’s preferred measure of inflation.
Stocks have been under pressure this week from reports showing the U.S. economy may be stronger than economists thought. While that’s encouraging news for workers and for people looking for jobs, it could make the Fed less likely to cut interest rates several times in the coming months.
The Fed just delivered its first cut of the year last week, and officials had penciled in more through the end of next year. That was critical for Wall Street after U.S. stocks shot to records since April in large part because of expectations for rate cuts. Easier rates can boost the economy and make investors more willing to pay high prices for stocks and other investments.
The Fed will consider Friday’s inflation data — along with various reports on the labor market — when it makes its next interest rate decision late next month.
In midday European trading, Germany’s DAX added 0.7%, France’s CAC-40 climbed 0.8% and Britain’s FTSE 100 rose 0.5%.
It’s unclear if the new U.S. tariffs would be added on top of existing duties or if countries with trade deals like the EU would be granted exemptions.
“For Asia, this is not just noise from abroad — it is structural vulnerability laid bare. Tariffs aimed at pharma may be targeted, but they ripple through investor psychology like a pebble dropped into a still pond. And with valuations stretched, every tremor feels magnified,” Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management wrote in a commentary.
Most Asian indexes were in the red, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 closing nearly 0.9% lower at 45,354.99.
Sumitomo Pharma Co.’s shares lost 3.5% while Chugai Pharmaceutical sank nearly 5%.
Government data on Friday showed inflation in the Tokyo area rose 2.5% year-on-year in September, matching the pace in August but falling below expectations of an uptick to 2.8%. Inflation, however, was still above the Bank of Japan’s 2% target, leading to speculation about a rate hike later this year.
South Korea’s Kospi tumbled 2.5% to 3,386.05 in a third consecutive session of losses amid growing worries over prolonged tariff negotiations with the U.S.
In Chinese markets, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index fell 1.4% to 26,128.20, while the Shanghai Composite index was down nearly 0.7% to 3,828.11.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.2% to 8,787.70. India’s BSE Sensex fell 0.9% while Taiwan’s Taiex lost 1.7%.
