Rates and labor data
Initial jobless claims rose to 223,000 and continuing claims reached 1.899 million, both above estimates. Later, Trump said he would demand an immediate decline in U.S. interest rates.
Jan 23, 2025 · QQQ/SPY Market Review · 25 headlines
SPY edges higher and leads QQQ amid rate demands and AI policy moves
SPY opened 0.12% below its previous close and finished up 0.43%. QQQ opened down 0.43% and ended up 0.07%, leaving SPY ahead by 0.36 percentage point. Calls for lower rates and a cluster of trade, energy and AI policy statements shared attention with new AI products. The Bank of Japan's rate increase and fresh inflation and services readings arrived overnight.
Published
- QQQ
- +0.07%
- SPY
- +0.43%
- QQQ − SPY
- -0.36%
What shaped the session
AI capital and products
OpenAI and SoftBank reportedly planned to commit $19 billion each to Stargate. OpenAI launched the Operator shopping agent and outlined access to o3-mini, while Perplexity introduced an Android assistant.
Trade, energy and AI policy
Trump discussed tariffs on foreign-made goods, lower oil prices and a 15% corporate tax rate for U.S.-made products. He also proposed emergency declarations for AI power plants, while an aide announced orders on AI and crypto.
Overnight Japan readings
The Bank of Japan raised its policy rate from 0.25% to 0.50%. Core inflation was 3.0% and the preliminary services PMI rose to 52.7, adding new monetary and economic context overnight.
Key news
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