Dow, S&P 500, Nasdaq diverge after Nvidia earnings, economic data

Oil prices bounced above their yearly low on Thursday after President Trump canceled Chevron’s license to operate in Venezuela. Traders also assessed the potential impact of a new tariff on China and the impact of Canada and Mexico duties after the president said they would go into effect on March 4.

West Texas Intermediate crude (CL=F) rose more than 1% to hover just below $70 per barrel. Brent futures (BZ=F) also popped above $73 per barrel.

Oil moved higher on the heels of Trump’s social media post announcing the US would reverse concessions in an oil transaction agreement with Venezuela, dating back to November 2022.

Though Trump did not mention Chevron (CVX) by name, the agreement coincides with the date the US granted the company permission to produce and export Venezuelan oil, despite sanctions against President Nicolas Maduro’s government.

Stocks were mixed on Thursday as chip heavyweight Nvidia (NVDA) led the tech sector higher following fourth quarter results. Meanwhile, investors digested the latest US economic data, including GDP, against the backdrop of President Trump’s evolving tariff plan.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) moved up roughly 0.7%, while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) gained 0.5%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) rose above the flat line.

Shares of Nvidia popped in early trading after the company’s data center revenue clocked in at $35.6 billion versus expectations of $34 billion in the quarter.

Economic data released before the bell showed the US economy grew at an annualized rate of 2.3%, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis’s second estimate of fourth quarter GDP.

Investors are assessing the impact of President Donald Trump’s tariff plan. On Thursday morning, the president said tariffs against Mexico and Canada will indeed move forward as scheduled on March 4. Trump also threatened new tariffs on the European Union on Wednesday.

Separately, data from the US Labor Department released Thursday showed 242,000 unemployment claims were filed in the week ending Feb. 22, ahead of Wall Street’s expectations for 221,000 and an increase of 22,000 from the previous week’s revised level. This marked the highest level of filed claims since December.

There was also a notable increase in D.C. jobless claims, with 2,047 claims filed last week versus 1,626 in the prior-week period. Overall, though, federal jobless claims did not show any obvious impact from DOGE-related layoffs, though economists warned the timing is still early.

Continuing weekly unemployment insurance claims also continued to hover at high levels, highlighting the ongoing challenge for workers to find a new job. Continuing claims during the week ending Feb. 15 ticked down slightly to 1.86 million, a decrease of 5,000 from the previous week’s revised level and below Wall Street expectations.

The US economy grew at an unrevised 2.3% annualized pace last quarter, on par with consensus estimates.

The Bureau of Economic Analysis’s (BEA) second estimate of fourth quarter US gross domestic product (GDP) was unchanged from the advanced estimate, which had shown 2.3% annualized growth.

The second estimate, based on more complete source data than the advanced estimate, suggests that economic growth in the fourth quarter was slower than the 3.1% annualized growth seen in the third quarter.

The increase in real GDP in the fourth quarter primarily reflected increases in consumer spending and government spending that were partly offset by a decrease in investment, according to the BEA.

A third and final estimate for Q4 GDP growth will be released at the end of March.

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Salesforce (CRM) is downplaying the near-term revenue impact of its AI-powered Agentforce platform, and Wall Street isn’t thrilled.

Shares fell 3% in premarket trading after the company issued a weaker-than-expected 2025 outlook. Yahoo Finance’s Brian Sozzi breaks it down:

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