Stocks gain in choppy trade as markets digest Trump’s speech
- Last updated: January 21, 2026 | 21:09 ..
US stocks staged a modest recovery on Wednesday after the sharpest equities selloff in three months, as investors digested President Donald Trump’s comments at Davos, including a fresh push to acquire Greenland.
Speaking to world leaders in Davos, Switzerland, Trump insisted only the United States can truly guarantee Greenland’s security. Trump, however, signaled he wouldn’t “use force” to take control and called for immediate negotiations toward a deal to acquire Greenland.
Markets continued to be cautious after Tuesday’s rout, when all three major US indexes slid nearly 2% on Trump’s warning that fresh tariffs could hit European allies unless the US is allowed to buy Greenland, an autonomous territory of Denmark.
“That likely put (hint of not using force) a floor in the recent sell-off was that we’re not going to use force to acquire Greenland. So that’s a sigh of relief for markets,” said Art Hogan, chief market strategist at B Riley Wealth.
“But we’re certainly concerned about reigniting a trade war.” The CBOE Volatility index dropped from its mid-November highs touched in the previous session, down 1.22 points at 18.87.
US megacap companies Nvidia and Tesla, which were among the worst hit in Tuesday’s selloff, up 0.4% each.
At 09:38 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 203.56 points, or 0.42%, to 48,692.15, the S&P 500 up 27.28 points, or 0.40%, to 6,824.14 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 45 points, or 0.20%, to 22,999.6.
Investors will also monitor remarks from other business and global leaders in Davos. Back in Washington, markets will watch the US Supreme Court as it hears arguments over Trump’s push to remove Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook.
It is also a busy week of US data, including third-quarter GDP, January PMI readings and the Personal Consumption Expenditures report, which is the Fed’s go-to inflation measure. Adding to the mix is a packed earnings calendar featuring Procter & Gamble and Intel, which should provide an insight into consumer demand and the overall economic momentum.
Netflix shares dropped 4.2% after the streaming giant paused share buybacks to help fund the purchase of Warner Bros Discovery’s studio and streaming businesses.
United Airlines rose 3% after the carrier issued an upbeat outlook for the current quarter and the full year.
Peers American Airlines and Delta Air Lines rose over 1.5% each. Halliburton added 2.7% after beating estimates for fourth-quarter profit.
Johnson & Johnson dipped 1.6% despite forecasting 2026 sales and profit ahead of Wall Street estimates. Of the 33 companies in the S&P 500 that reported quarterly earnings through last Friday, 84.8% beat analysts’ estimates for profit, according to LSEG I/B/E/S data, compared to the long-term average of 67.3%.
Among other stocks, US nuclear sector companies rose after Trump supported nuclear energy procurement. NuScale Power was up 4.8%, Nano Nuclear Energy gained 4% and Sam Altman-backed Oklo rose 2.7%.
Kraft Heinz slipped nearly 1%% after a regulatory filing showed Berkshire Hathaway may shed its 27.5% stake in the consumer company.
Gold prices extended their record run to breach the $4,800 per ounce level on Wednesday on safe-haven flows driven by escalating friction between the United States and NATO over Greenland.
Spot gold climbed 2.1% to $4,861.91 per ounce by 1152 GMT, after scaling a record $4,887.82 earlier in the session. US gold futures for February delivery climbed 2.1% to $4,864.80 per ounce.
Spot silver rose 0.2% to $94.71 an ounce, after hitting a record high of $95.87 on Tuesday, powered by a cocktail of factors including sustained physical tightness and safe-haven demand.
“There continues to be a myriad of factors boosting bullion, not least simply its safe haven quality. The Greenland crisis is front and centre with President Trump expected to deliver his Davos speech later today,” said Jamie Dutta, market analyst at Nemo.money.
Trump said on Tuesday that he remained firm in his ambition to gain control of Greenland, refusing to rule out taking the Arctic island by force.
The US president is likely to use the World Economic Forum in Davos to escalate his push for acquiring Greenland despite European protests.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said she would not yield to Trump’s demands and abandon Greenland.
The dollar index hovered at a two-week low after White House threats over Greenland triggered a broad selloff in US assets, from the currency to Wall Street stocks and Treasury bonds.
A weaker dollar makes greenback-priced metals cheaper for overseas buyers.
Agencies