Scared Cat Bounce?

The S&P 500 rebounded nicely today in the morning after falling into correction territory yesterday (chart). Was yesterday the bottom? It might have been based on sentiment indicators. On a fundamental basis, President Donald Trump (a.k.a., Tariff Man) didn't tweet about tariffs today after doubling down on Thursday. "I'm not going to bend at all," Trump said when asked about his tariff plans during an Oval Office meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte. Any day without a Trump tariff comment is a good day for the market. Also, today we learned that in an unsigned letter addressed to the US trade representative, Tesla said while it "supports" fair trade it was concerned US exporters were "exposed to disproportionate impacts" if other countries retaliated to tariffs.

The market is also rallying on relief that there won't be a government shutdown. Democratic Minority Leader Senator Chuck Schumer announced Thursday evening that he will support a Republican short-term funding bill that will effectively help avoid a government shutdown at the end of the day. This morning, Schumer explained that a government shutdown would give Trump and Musk's DOGE more power to lay off or fire more government workers and shutter federal agencies.