US stock market is looking for fresh triggers and direction. The US market’s leading indices closed flat in Wednesday’s session after the Federal Reserve kept the interest rates unchanged.
Investors are closely monitoring Middle Eastern developments in light of economic uncertainties and conflict. Investor sentiment seems to be dampened by escalating tensions in the Middle East, as the ongoing Israel-Iran conflict stoked fears of deeper US involvement.
US Fed’s two-day FOMC meeting concluded by keeping rates unchanged. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell had a cautious tone amid rising geopolitical and economic uncertainty. Powell reaffirmed a data-dependent approach, pointing to unclear inflation impacts from President Trump’s tariffs and the risk of stagflation. Fed projections now include two rate cuts in 2025, alongside downgraded growth expectations and higher inflation forecasts.
US markets have been dominated by the Trump administration’s economic policies, notably the imposition of tariffs, since January. However, the suspension of reciprocal duties caused indices to mostly recover their lost ground.
In the first half of 2025, S&P 500 and Dow Jones are almost flat YTD. How reciprocal tariffs get implemented and trade war erupts will determine the direction for the markets in the H2.
US stock market is closed on Thursday, June 19, 2025, in observance of Juneteenth National Independence Day. There will be no trading in stocks, options, or exchange-traded funds (ETFs) on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) or Nasdaq on June 19. Bond market in US will also remain closed as per the holiday schedule of the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association’s (SIFMA). Regular trading on stock exchanges will resume on Friday, June 20, 2025.
Major U.S. exchanges have added Juneteenth to their list of full-day market closures, in line with federal guidelines, as it is recognized as a federal holiday.
Juneteenth, a federal holiday, was established under former President Joe Biden in 2021 and has since been recognized as Juneteenth National Independence Day.
Juneteenth (June 19) is the one of the oldest known commemorations related to the abolition of slavery in the United States. Juneteenth National Independence Day was signed into law as a national holiday on June 17, 2021. The word “Juneteenth” is a Black English contraction, or portmanteau, of the month “June” and the date “Nineteenth.” Juneteenth celebrates the date of June 19, 1865, when enslaved people of African descent located in Galveston, Texas, finally learned of their freedom from the slavery system in the United States.
Juneteenth, a federal holiday, is recognized by at least 30 states and the District of Columbia as a permanent state holiday, with Alaska and Vermont celebrating it for the first time this year.