Biotech and Argentina-linked stocks lead April 11 US market rebound amid volatility and tariff headwinds

U.S. stock markets staged a powerful recovery on April 11, 2025, with biotech, energy, and emerging market financials leading the charge in a volatile week marked by global trade disputes and policy uncertainty. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 1.6%, the S&P 500 rose 1.8%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite jumped 2.1% as investors shifted their focus from macroeconomic threats to sector-specific opportunities.

The sharp move upward followed steep declines earlier in the week, driven by escalating U.S.-China trade tensions. With tariffs reaching unprecedented levels—125% on key U.S. exports to China and 145% on Chinese imports into the U.S.—investors had been reeling from fears of a prolonged economic slowdown. However, Friday’s action reflected a clear pivot to risk-on sentiment as select equities appeared to be oversold and poised for tactical rebounds.

Biotech companies, energy shipping firms, and Argentina-linked financial institutions dominated the list of top gainers, with some stocks posting double-digit percentage increases in a single trading session.

Why did biotech stocks dominate the gainers list?

Biotechnology was the undisputed leader among April 11’s top-performing sectors, propelled by renewed investor confidence in high-growth drug developers and gene editing pioneers. Companies such as Recursion Pharmaceuticals, Certara, and CRISPR Therapeutics saw sharp intraday gains, driven by a combination of valuation resets, speculative interest, and sector rotation.

Recursion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. rose 27.72% to close at $5.76. Despite having faced pressure earlier in the year, the company benefited from a resurgence in investor interest in AI-driven drug discovery platforms. Its daily trading volume exceeded 82 million shares, well above its average, indicating strong institutional and retail participation.

Certara, Inc., a biosimulation and drug development software company, saw its stock jump 22.84% to $12.91. The rally followed positive sentiment around demand for simulation technologies in clinical trial design—a trend increasingly relevant as pharmaceutical companies seek to cut development timelines and regulatory risks.

Zai Lab Limited, an oncology and autoimmune drug developer based in China, climbed 21.46% to $29.54. The company has more than doubled its share price over the last year, reflecting optimism around its product pipeline and regional expansion plans in Asia and the U.S.

Summit Therapeutics Inc. continued its stellar performance, rising 15.33% to $23.24. The company’s year-over-year gains have exceeded 535%, underscoring investor enthusiasm around its licensed immunotherapy assets and strategic alliances.

CRISPR Therapeutics AG, a leading gene-editing firm, added 14.71% to reach $39.30. Despite a more than 30% decline year-to-date, Friday’s surge may suggest a bottoming out pattern for the broader gene therapy sector, which has underperformed in 2024 amid regulatory and cost challenges.

What role did energy and shipping stocks play in the rebound?

While tech and healthcare led on momentum, energy and shipping stocks also delivered notable gains, supported by moderate gains in crude and LNG prices. Investors appeared to rotate back into physical asset plays after weeks of tech-driven volatility.

Golar LNG Limited advanced 11.62% to $37.27. The company’s position in liquefied natural gas infrastructure and shipping places it at the nexus of global energy flows—a sector increasingly scrutinized in light of both the U.S.-China trade dispute and energy supply shifts following Eastern European instability.

Frontline plc, a key player in crude oil shipping, surged 10.48% to $15.50. The stock had been under pressure throughout Q1 2025 due to shipping rate fluctuations and geopolitical risk. However, Friday’s move could reflect renewed expectations for increased demand from Asia-Pacific and Latin America.

Why are Argentina-linked financial stocks soaring in US markets?

A remarkable theme among the top gainers was the resurgence of Argentine financial and infrastructure companies, including Banco Macro S.A., Grupo Financiero Galicia S.A., and YPF Sociedad Anónima. These American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) rallied as foreign investors reappraised Argentina’s economic reform trajectory under President Javier Milei.

Banco Macro S.A. rose 10.28% to $78.85, while Grupo Financiero Galicia S.A. added 10.12% to $53.87. YPF, the country’s largest oil and gas company, surged 8.88% to $30.03. The consistent upward trend in these names appears linked to international optimism around Argentina’s shift toward deregulation, fiscal discipline, and capital market openness.

The inflows into Argentine stocks contrast with broader emerging market caution, suggesting that investors are distinguishing between policy-led recoveries and more vulnerable markets still struggling with inflation and currency depreciation.

What other standout performers defined the session?

Among technology-linked stocks, Monolithic Power Systems, Inc. rallied 9.99% to $533.13. The firm’s analog and mixed-signal solutions are key components in data centers and automotive systems, positioning it well despite cyclical semiconductor weakness.

Strategy Incorporated, often closely tied to cryptocurrency sentiment due to its Bitcoin-centric treasury strategy, jumped 10.15% to $299.98. The move aligned with a modest rebound in Bitcoin prices, which had slipped earlier in the week following renewed regulatory scrutiny from U.S. lawmakers.

XPeng Inc., the Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer, rose 11.30% to $20.00. The company’s strong showing reflected broader EV sector enthusiasm following reports that U.S. trade officials were reviewing tariff structures for EV imports in a bid to stabilize global supply chains amid geopolitical tensions.

How are macroeconomic forces shaping market sentiment?

April’s market volatility is being shaped primarily by trade policy uncertainty, central bank hesitation, and residual inflationary pressure. President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariff announcement earlier in the month created one of the most disruptive moments for global equity markets in recent history, prompting China to retaliate swiftly.

While the tariffs have yet to directly impact many of the companies that surged on April 11, investor anxiety over cross-border trade disruptions and cost inflation remains elevated. Sectors with domestic or niche global exposure—such as biotech and LNG infrastructure—are increasingly viewed as tactical hedges.

Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve remains in a holding pattern, with investors uncertain whether future rate cuts are feasible in the current inflationary environment. As a result, markets are being driven more by sentiment, earnings surprises, and tactical repositioning than by macro clarity.

Is this rebound sustainable or just a tactical bounce?

While the April 11 surge was broad-based, many analysts remain cautious. The S&P 500, Nasdaq, and Dow are still down significantly for the year—by 8.8%, 13.4%, and 5.5%, respectively. Friday’s rally may reflect short-covering and temporary optimism rather than a durable shift in fundamentals.

That said, the composition of gainers—dominated by biotech innovation, energy logistics, and emerging market finance—suggests that investors are no longer retreating to passive defensive strategies. Instead, they are selectively backing narratives with asymmetric upside and minimal exposure to tariff-driven shocks.

In this environment, alpha may increasingly come from targeted exposure to thematic plays—be it gene editing, AI in drug development, or LNG supply chain realignment—rather than from broad index positioning.