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Indexes up: Dow 0.61%, S&P 500 0.25%, Nasdaq 0.15%

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Honeywell, Sherwin-Williams ( SHW ) lift Dow

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General Motors ( GM ) pulls forecast on tariff uncertainty

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HSBC slashes S&P 500 year-end target

(Updates through late morning trade)

By Lisa Pauline Mattackal and Purvi Agarwal

April 29 (Reuters) - Wall Street's main indexes moved

higher in volatile trading on Tuesday as a mixed bag of

corporate earnings, soft economic data and fresh developments on

the U.S.-China trade front kept investors on the sidelines.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent predicted China could

lose 10 million jobs quickly due to tariffs, but signaled

progress on trade deals with other countries including Japan and

India.

The world's two largest economies have slapped tit-for-tat

import tariffs on each other and uncertainty around the state of

negotiations between the two has kept markets on edge.

There is still some optimism around "what will likely be

deals with India, Japan, Australia, and South Korea", but talks

with China will likely be "the last pin to fall", said Patriarch

Organization CEO Eric Schiffer.

A day after U.S. officials said the Trump administration

will move to reduce the impact of automotive tariffs, shares of

Ford were only marginally higher and Tesla fell

0.6%.

The blue-chip Dow got a boost as Honeywell

jumped 5.4% on reporting a rise in adjusted profit for the first

quarter. Paintmaker Sherwin-Williams gained 5% after its

quarterly profit beat estimates.

However, General Motors ( GM ) fell 1.6% after the automaker

pulled its annual forecast due to tariff uncertainty.

The day's data releases also pointed to an increasingly

murky economic outlook. The Conference Board's consumer

confidence index dropped to its lowest reading since May 2020,

while job openings came in at 7.19 million in March, below

estimates of 7.48 million.

"We're just in this eye of the storm ... for a lot of

investors, consumers, and business leaders wondering what the

future looks like as potential tariffs kick in down the road,"

said Matthew Stucky, chief portfolio manager at Northwestern

Mutual Wealth Management.

At 11:49 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average

rose 243.76 points, or 0.61%, to 40,471.35, the S&P 500

gained 13.75 points, or 0.25%, to 5,542.50 and the Nasdaq

Composite gained 26.30 points, or 0.15%, to 17,392.44.

More economic data, including nonfarm payrolls, is expected

this week, and results from many of the "Magnificent Seven"

group of megacap stocks are also due, with investors hawk-eyed

on any signs of tariff impact on their outlook.

All three major indexes remain down for the year, despite

the S&P 500 logging its best winning streak since November on

Monday.

HSBC became the latest brokerage to trim its year-end target

for the S&P 500 index, cutting it to 5,600 from 6,700 earlier.

Coca-Cola rose 0.6% after beating revenue and profit

estimates, while United Parcel Service ( UPS ) edged 0.2% lower

after its quarterly results.

Wells Fargo ( WFC ) gained 1.3% after announcing a stock

buyback program of up to $40 billion.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.26-to-1 ratio

on the NYSE and by a 1.11-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P 500 posted 3 new 52-week highs and 4 new lows while

the Nasdaq Composite recorded 23 new highs and 47 new lows.