WEEKLY MARKET RECAP – APRIL 25, 2025

U.S. stocks started the week with steep losses on Monday but rallied strongly over the next four days, recovering from the previous week’s declines. For the week, the NASDAQ jumped 6.7%, the S&P 500 rose 4.6%, and the Dow gained 2.5%.

The NASDAQ’s standout performance was driven by strong earnings reports from major tech companies and broad strength in the technology sector. Tech stocks within the S&P 500 soared nearly 8% on average for the week, while the consumer staples sector lagged, falling more than 1%.

As earnings season hit its peak, the outlook for S&P 500 companies improved. First-quarter net income is now expected to grow 10.1% compared to a year ago, based on a combination of results already reported and forecasts for upcoming releases, according to FactSet, up from a 7.0% growth projection the previous week.

U.S. government bond prices rose, pushing yields lower, as recent fixed-income market volatility eased. The yield on the 10-year Treasury ended Friday around 4.26%, down from a high of 4.59% reached earlier in April. Longer-term yields also declined, with the 30-year Treasury closing around 4.72%.

The International Monetary Fund downgraded its global economic growth forecasts, citing the impact of escalating tariffs. The IMF now projects global GDP to grow 2.8% in 2025 and 3.0% in 2026—lower than the 3.3% estimates made just three months ago.

U.S. consumer sentiment continued to deteriorate, with the University of Michigan’s sentiment index dropping for the fourth consecutive month. April’s final reading was 52.2, down from 57.0 in March and well below the 74.0 level recorded at the end of 2024. Survey respondents pointed to concerns over rising tariffs and inflation.

Gold’s strong year-to-date rally paused this week, though the metal briefly surpassed $3,400 per ounce for the first time on Monday. By Friday afternoon, gold was trading around $3,310—slightly down for the week but still up 24% for the year.

Looking ahead, the coming week will feature key economic updates, including a monthly jobs report, a preliminary estimate of first-quarter GDP growth, an inflation report, and other important data releases. The employment report will reveal whether April’s job growth kept pace with March’s stronger-than-expected gain of 228,000 jobs.