04:07 PM EDT, 04/04/2025 (MT Newswires) -- US benchmark equity indexes ended lower Friday as China retaliated with fresh tariffs on US goods and Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell flagged inflation risks from the ongoing trade war.

The Trump administration on Wednesday imposed duties on several countries, including China, which responded Friday with its own retaliatory tariffs of 34% on US products.

* Powell said that 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."

* 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% month on month.

* May West Texas Intermediate crude oil closed down $4.11 to settle at $62.84 per barrel, while June Brent crude, the global benchmark, was last seen down $3.72 to $66.43 as the fallout from US President Donald Trump's trade wars continues.

* Tech companies may be heading into "dark days" as Trump's new tariffs could reduce earnings by at least 15%, making trade negotiations a pressing priority, Wedbush Securities said.

Nvidia ( NVDA ) shares dropped 6.7%, along with Apple ( AAPL ) , which fell 71%. Tesla (TSLA) lost 10%, with other mega-cap technology stocks Amazon.com ( AMZN ) , Microsoft ( MSFT ) , Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL), and Meta Platforms ( META ) also down.

* CXApp ( CXAI ) said late Thursday that annual recurring revenue grew by double digits in 2024, and earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization surged 30% year over year as expenses dropped by 20% from a year ago. Shares advanced 80%.

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