By Katy Barnato and Karen Langley
The bond market showed signs of stabilizing Thursday after the House passed President Trump's sprawling tax-and-spending package. Major stock indexes were mixed, while bitcoin prices held near new record highs.
Treasury yields, which move inversely to prices, slipped. The benchmark 10-year yield edged lower to 4.551%. Its 30-year equivalent inched down but remained above 5%.
Prior to last-minute changes, the bill was expected to increase budget deficits by about $2.7 trillion over a decade. Investors had expected to see "much more in terms of fiscal restraint," said Federal Reserve policymaker Christopher Waller.
Anxieties about the size of the forecast deficits, combined with Moody's Ratings stripping the U.S. of its last major triple-A credit rating, have pushed yields higher in recent days.
On Thursday, the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average each declined less than 0.1%, with the Dow losing 1.35 points. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite added 0.3%.
The S&P 500 plunged after President Trump's announcement of sweeping tariffs on April 2, only to rocket higher after the president said he had authorized a 90-day pause on certain tariffs to most countries. Stocks have remained volatile but generally continued higher.
"The market seems tired," said Andrew Slimmon, senior portfolio manager at Morgan Stanley Investment Management. "What has led the rally is the high-risk stocks. That's running out of steam."
New data showed an unexpected drop in existing home sales last month, in the slowest April for the housing market since 2009.
In Thursday's trading:
The Nasdaq Composite rose, while the S&P 500 edged lower. On Wednesday the Dow fell 1.9% after a disappointing Treasury auction accelerated the bond selloff.
Health insurers declined after the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said it would expand its auditing of Medicare Advantage.
Bitcoin traded above $111,000, extending a rally that gained extra momentum this week after the Senate voted to advance a bill aimed at regulating stablecoins. Trump will attend a gala dinner Thursday with the biggest holders of his $TRUMP meme coin.
Asian and European stocks retreated, echoing Wednesday's falls in the U.S. Eurozone business activity declined in May, despite Trump rolling back some tariff hikes, new data showed.
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 22, 2025 16:20 ET (20:20 GMT)
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