Trump declares a national emergency, threatens to impose new tariffs

On January 29th, local time, the three major U.S. stock indices opened and then declined sharply. The Federal Reserve kept interest rates unchanged and halted rate cuts, geopolitical factors continued to cause disturbances, and technology stocks were dragged down by factors such as Microsoft’s cloud business growth slowdown, putting pressure on risk appetite in the U.S. stock market. The Nasdaq index once fell more than 2% during the session but then steadily rebounded, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average ultimately closed higher.

According to Xinhua News Agency, U.S. President Trump signed an executive order on the 29th, declaring a national emergency and threatening to impose ad valorem tariffs on U.S. exports to countries providing oil to Cuba. Additionally, on the same day, President Trump posted on social media that if Canada cannot immediately resolve the licensing issues for several of Gulfstream’s business jets, the U.S. will impose a 50% tariff on aircraft manufactured in Canada.

U.S. Stock Market’s Three Major Indices Close Mixed

On January 29th, local time, the three major U.S. stock indices closed with mixed results. At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.11% to 49,071.56 points, the S&P 500 fell 0.13% to 6,969.01 points, and the Nasdaq declined 0.72% to 23,685.12 points.

In the market, large tech stocks showed mixed performance: Nvidia rose 0.52%, marking three consecutive days of gains; Google C rose 0.71%, reaching a new all-time high; Amazon fell 0.53%, Broadcom declined 0.75%, and Tesla dropped 3.23%.

The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index rose 0.16%, hitting a new all-time high. Lam Research gained 3.59%, KLA Corporation increased 3.53%, and ASML rose 2.27%. The storage concept stocks overall advanced, with Seagate Technology up 0.82%, Micron Technology up 0.12%, and SanDisk closing up 2.21%.

In the Chinese concept stocks sector, the Nasdaq Golden Dragon China Index increased 0.35%. Popular Chinese stocks showed mixed performance: TAL Education rose 18.03%, NIO gained 3.92%, New Oriental increased 0.87%, and Li Auto rose 0.64%. Decliners included BrainRegen, which fell over 13%, Canadian Solar dropped over 9%, Xiaopao Zhixing declined over 8%, and Jinko Solar fell over 5%.

Microsoft Plummets 10%, Heavy Hit to Software Sector

During Thursday’s morning pullback in the U.S. stock market, Microsoft’s 10% plunge weighed on the index trend. By the close, Microsoft fell 9.99% to $433.5. This marked Microsoft’s largest single-day decline since March 2020, with a market cap evaporating approximately $357 billion in one day.

Market concerns centered on Microsoft’s record-breaking AI capital expenditure in the previous quarter, with worries that high-intensity investments could erode profitability in the software business. This sentiment also spread to other tech stocks. ServiceNow dropped 9.94%, Salesforce declined 6.09%, Oracle fell 2.19%, and German software company SAP plummeted 15.2%.

Microsoft’s latest financial report showed that for the second quarter of fiscal year 2026, the company’s revenue was $81.3 billion, up 17% year-over-year; operating profit was $38.3 billion, up 21%; GAAP net profit was $38.5 billion, up 60%; and non-GAAP net profit was $30.9 billion, up 23%. Microsoft’s capital expenditure for the second quarter reached $37.5 billion, a 66% increase, setting a record. Microsoft Investor Relations Director James Ambrose stated that the increase in infrastructure spending reflects strong cloud demand in both AI-related and non-AI workloads.

Additionally, after market close on January 29th, Apple released its financial results. For the first quarter of fiscal year 2026, revenue reached $143.76 billion, a 16% increase year-over-year, setting a new record, with iPhone revenue at $85.27 billion, also a record high, surpassing market expectations; services revenue hit $30.01 billion, a new high, up 14% YoY. Notably, Apple’s sales performance in China was particularly strong, with revenue in the region increasing 38% YoY to $25.53 billion in the first quarter. Apple attributed this performance to iPhone sales.

Trump Sues U.S. Treasury and IRS

Claiming at Least $10 Billion in Damages

CCTV News reported that on the 29th, local time, U.S. President Trump filed a lawsuit in federal court, suing the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), accusing them of illegally leaking his personal tax return information during his first presidential term, and demanding at least $10 billion in damages.

The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court in Miami, Florida. Trump’s side stated that the unauthorized disclosure of relevant tax information constitutes a serious violation of Trump’s personal privacy and legal rights.