NEW YORK, Feb. 21 (Xinhua) — U.S. stocks finished higher on Friday after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against the broad tariffs implemented by the Trump administration last year.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 230.81 points, or 0.47 percent, to 49,625.97. The S&P 500 added 47.62 points, or 0.69 percent, to 6,909.51. The Nasdaq Composite Index increased by 203.34 points, or 0.9 percent, to 22,886.07.
Nine of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended in green. Communication services and consumer discretionary led the gainers, rising 2.65 percent and 1.27 percent respectively. Meanwhile, the energy and health sectors lagged, dropping 0.71 percent and 0.32 percent respectively.
In a 6-3 ruling on Friday, the Supreme Court determined that the executive branch exceeded its authority by using emergency powers to impose import taxes on most trading partners, declaring many of the previous year’s tariffs illegal. In response, U.S. President Donald Trump stated during a press conference that his administration intends to introduce a new “10 percent global tariff” to replace the duties struck down by the court.
The court’s decision arrived alongside fresh economic data showing persistent inflationary pressure. The personal consumption expenditures price index, the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge, rose 2.9 percent year over year in December, exceeding market expectations. Core inflation, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, rose to 3 percent from 2.8 percent in November.
Meanwhile, the U.S. GDP increased at a 1.4 percent annual rate in the fourth quarter of 2025, well below the 2.5 percent growth market analysts had projected, according to data released Friday by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. The data release was delayed by a month due to the federal government shutdown, which economists estimate stripped between 0.25 and 1.5 percentage points from the quarterly growth.
In corporate news, major technology shares mostly advanced on Friday. Alphabet shares climbed 3.74 percent, while Amazon rose approximately 2.5 percent. Nvidia, Apple, and Meta each gained more than 1 percent. Microsoft recorded a slight decline, and Tesla ended the session unchanged. Investors now will turn their focus to Nvidia’s earnings next week.
