Stock Market Summary – June 17, 2025

The Federal Reserve’s policy meeting this week is unlikely to lead to any immediate movement on interest rates, with the committee expected to maintain their forecast of two rate cuts this year. Chair Jerome Powell will need to react to a White House campaign pushing for decreased monetary rates, with impacts from the ongoing Israel-Iran conflict and tariffs being closely assessed by investors.

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy predicts increased use of generative AI which may reduce the need for certain roles within a company, leading to a leaner workforce. Oil prices rose by 4% on Tuesday following Trump’s threat to Iran and its leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Meanwhile, the housing market continues to struggle as high mortgage rates and low inventory pressure affordability.

JPMorgan Chase is expanding further into the cryptocurrency market with the proposed launch of JPMD, a stablecoin-like token. Aimed at institution-level clients, JPMD offers round-the-clock settlement and allows interest to be paid to holders. Meanwhile, pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly is eyeing long-term growth by stocking its pipeline with potential winners, announcing plans to buy gene-editing firm Verve Therapeutics for $1.3 billion.

Finally, it’s anticipated that a wider array of stocks could drive further gains in the QQQ Nasdaq-100 ETF, with stocks such as Palantir Technologies, Zscaler, Micron Technology, Netflix, AppLovin, Warner Bros. Discovery and Charter Communications expected to rally in the coming year.

US stocks tracked lower amidst concerns over intensifying conflicts between Israel and Iran. The S&P 500 energy sector added 1% taking advantage of the rising crude oil futures, with Valero Energy gaining 2.9%. Chevron, Hess, and APAC Corporation also advanced more than 1%. The electronics manufacturer, Jabil, saw its stocks rise nearly 9% after boosting its full-year outlook based on Q3 beats.

Meanwhile, airline stocks fell. JetBlue Airways dropped by 7.9% after announcing new cost cuts due to softer-than-expected travel demand. Other carriers’ shares followed suit, with United Airlines down by 6.2%, Delta Air Lines by 4.3%, and American Airlines by 3%.

Solar stocks took a significant hit as the Senate’s version of President Donald Trump’s tax bill would phase out renewable energy incentives. Enphase Energy fell by 24%, First Solar by 18%, and Sunrun by a massive 40%. SolarEdge Technologies also stepped back around 33%.

Biotech company Verve Therapeutics saw an impressive 81% rally following an agreement to be taken over by Eli Lilly for $10.50 per share, a 68% premium. The total deal could be worth up to $1.3 billion and is set to close in the third quarter. Eli Lilly shares fell 2% in response.

T-Mobile US shares dropped 4% after reports emerged of SoftBank selling 21.5 million T-Mobile shares, raising roughly $4.8 billion.

Tesla shares also fell nearly 4% after reports that the EV maker was halting Cybertruck and Model Y production for a week in Austin, Texas. Similarly, Reddit stock jumped 6% after the social media company introduced new AI advertising tools.

Amazon announced an extension of its annual Prime Day event to four days, and Wells Fargo reiterated its “overweight” buy rating on Meta Platforms, citing the company’s efforts to monetize WhatsApp.

The conflict in the Middle East also pushed oil prices up around 1%, and Middle East Strife saw Trump leave the G7 summit early. Further news around this situation led to the Dow Jones Industrial Average sliding 235 points, S&P 500 futures falling 0.5%, and Nasdaq 100 futures shedding 0.6%.

In the AI field, OpenAI secured a $200 million contract from the U.S. Defense Department to provide AI tools. Amazon extends its Prime Day event and launches AI tools, and Reddit released AI-powered advertising features contributing to a 6% rise in its stock.