New York: Wall Street stocks recovered on Friday after the US Supreme Court struck down certain tariffs imposed under former President Donald Trump, a ruling expected to help ease inflationary pressures.

Shares initially opened lower following weak US economic data, but equities surged after the Supreme Court ruled 6-3 that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) "does not authorise the President to impose tariffs."

By 16:10 GMT, the Dow Jones Industrial Average had risen 0.3 per cent to 49,521.49. The broad-based S&P 500 gained 0.6 per cent to 6,901.67, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index jumped 1.0 per cent to 22,914.91.

Art Hogan of B. Riley Wealth Management said the ruling brought greater certainty to US trade policy and was likely to curb inflation.

"This ruling eventually becomes a lid on inflationary pressures on an imported goods level," Hogan said, adding that the high court ruling limited Trump's ability to impose tariffs with IEEPA "in both scope and duration."

Earlier, US government data showed the economy grew at a 1.4 per cent annual rate in the fourth quarter, well below analysts’ forecast of 2.5 per cent.

Meanwhile, the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index indicated inflation rose to 0.4 per cent in December, up from 0.2 per cent the previous month, disappointing investors hoping for lower inflation to support further Federal Reserve interest rate cuts.

AFP