Equity Markets Plunge for Second Day as Trade Tensions Escalate

04:38 PM EDT, 04/04/2025 (MT Newswires) -- US benchmark equity indexes plunged Friday for the second straight day after China retaliated with tariffs on US products in an escalating trade battle.

The Nasdaq Composite decreased 5.8% to 15,587.8, the S&P 500 tumbled 6% to 5,074.1 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average slumped more than 2,200, or 5.5%, to 38,314.9. All sectors fell with energy and financials posting the steepest declines.

US Treasury yields fell with the 10-year rate losing 1.4 basis points to 4% and the two-year rate down 2.3 basis points to 3.7%.

May West Texas Intermediate crude oil decreased 6.5% to $62.62 a barrel.

China responded Friday with its own retaliatory tariffs of 34% on US products. The new tariffs will be implemented April 10. The Trump administration on Wednesday imposed duties on many countries, including China.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said that President Donald's Trump's tariffs will likely drive inflation higher and slow down US economic growth.

"While uncertainty remains elevated, it is now becoming clear that the tariff increases will be significantly larger than expected," Powell said. "The same is likely to be true of the economic effects, which will include higher inflation and slower growth."

In economic news, the US economy added 228,000 jobs in March, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. The consensus was for a 140,000 increase in a survey compiled by Bloomberg. The unemployment rate increased to 4.2% from 4.1% in February.

"Given the ongoing efforts to shrink the federal government and rising trade uncertainty, we suspect that job growth is likely to soften over the coming months," TD Economics said.

In company news, GE HealthCare Technologies ( GEHC ) shares fell 16%, the biggest drop on the S&P, after China restricted exports of a rare earth metal used in MRI scans as part of retaliation against the Trump tariffs.

APA (APA) shares fell 14%, the second-largest decline on the S&P. Capital One and Wolfe Research reduced the price target on the stock.

Big oil shares fell. Schlumberger ( SLB ) dropped 11%, Chevron ( CVX ) slipped 8.2%, Exxon Mobil ( XOM ) lost 7.2% and Marathon Petroleum ( MPC ) declined 5.9%

Nike ( NKE ) shares rose 3% and lululemon athletica (LULU) gained 3.2%. Trump said in a post on Truth Social that Vietnam was willing to eliminate tariffs.

Gold dropped 2% to $3,057.90 per troy ounce, while silver slumped 7.2% to $29.66 per troy ounce.

MT Newswires does not provide investment advice. Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited.