Stock market opens stronger, led by Netflix, AI as tariff worries wilt

Strong corporate earnings and technology shares boosted Wall Street at Wednesday’s open, with the broad S&P 500 index closing in on its record high.

Netflix shares soared to a record high after the streaming giant reported a blowout quarter. Oracle, Nvidia and Microsoft and other artificial intelligence-linked stocks surged after the leaders of SoftBank, Oracle and OpenAI announced, with President Donald Trump, a Stargate AI venture.

Around 10:10 AM ET, the S&P 500 was up 0.65%, or 39.48 points, at 6,088.72; the blue-chip Dow rose 0.34%, or 151.45 points, at 44,177.26; and tech-laden Nasdaq gained 1.28%, or 252.64 points, to rise to 20,009.42. The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield was unchanged at 4.574%.

Corporate news

A string of positive company reports bolstered the stock market. The news included:

Netflix shares neared $1,000 apiece in early trading after the company topped quarterly earnings estimates, gained almost 19 million new subscribers, which is a record, and raised its 2025 revenue forecast. It’s also raising its subscription prices. The company’s all-time closing high share price is $936.56, reached on Dec. 11, according to Dow Jones Market Data.
SoftBank, Oracle and OpenAI announced, with Trump present, a pledged $500 billion in AI investment in the U.S. Nvidia, Microsoft and Arm Holdings will be involved in creating infrastructure for the joint venture, which is called Stargate. All of those companies’ shares were higher.
Procter & Gamble’s quarterly earnings topped analysts’ estimates, helped by higher demand for household staples like toilet paper and laundry products. Shares were up 2.75%.

On the downside, Johnson & Johnson fell 3% after the drugmaker cited hurdles for this year, including Medicare changes and a stronger U.S. dollar that will hurt overseas sales. It reported better-than-expected quarterly revenue and profit on higher sales of cancer drugs and some medical devices but its full-year sales forecast fell short of expectations.

What about Trump’s tariffs?

After Trump’s softer tone on tariffs, investors have put those worries on the backburner to focus on company news, analysts said.

Before Monday’s inauguration, people feared large, blanket tariffs across the board would be inflationary and slow the economy. Instead, “broad and immediate tariffs were not announced, rather President Trump instructed the government to study multiple avenues and options,” Morgan Stanley economists wrote in a note on Tuesday.

Trump’s comments late Tuesday on a potential 10% tariff on Chinese imports beginning Feb. 1 also did little to move markets.

“This latest number (of 10%) is less than those threatened in the months leading up to this point, which indicates Trump may be open to caution when it comes to escalation,” said Elizabeth Renter, senior economist at NerdWallet.

Bitcoin volatility

Bitcoin continued to swing between losses and gains, last down 1.29% to $104,827.80.

But some analysts were generally bullish.

“We expect Bitcoin’s price to remain elevated due to a more favorable regulatory and political environment in the U.S., increased institutional adoption, and a looser Fed monetary policy,” said Marion Laboure, Deutsche Bank analyst.

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Stock market opens stronger, led by Netflix, AI as tariff worries wilt

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