US equities edged modestly higher as investors awaited a potential ruling from the Supreme Court of the United States on the legality of tariffs imposed during the presidency of Donald Trump.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 0.4% to 49,441.30, supported by official data showing that US unemployment declined more than expected, easing from 4.6% to 4.4% in December.
The S&P 500 gained 0.2% to 6,937.34, while the technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite edged 0.1% higher to 23,492.20 ahead of the anticipated court decision.
The Supreme Court of the United States is expected later today to deliver a significant setback to the tariff framework introduced under Donald Trump, potentially triggering renewed disruption to global trade.
Prediction markets indicate that the Court is likely to rule against the former president’s use of emergency tariff powers when it issues its judgment on the application of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to impose the sweeping levies.
According to Polymarket, there is only a 25% probability that the Court will uphold the existing implementation of the tariffs, which account for approximately half of the increases introduced during the Trump administration.
