Dow sinks 800 points, S&P 500 and Nasdaq see worst day since April as Trump’s renewed tariff threats spook Wall Street

Stocks closed sharply lower on Friday after President Trump said his administration is considering imposing a “massive increase” in tariffs on Chinese goods.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) sank more than 800 points, or 1.9%, while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) tumbled 2.7%, near the lows of the session.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) fell roughly 3.6% as semiconductor and other tech stocks sank.

Bitcoin (BTC-USD) prices also plummeted on Friday as investors rushed for the exits amid a broad-based market sell-off.

Stocks had been at record highs this week as the AI trade and easing monetary policy expectations fueled enthusiasm for a continuing rally.

But Friday’s social media post from Trump flared fears that US-China trade tensions have escalated to new levels.

Bitcoin (BTC-USD) prices plummeted on Friday as investors rushed for the exits amid a broad-based market sell-off.

The accelerated losses in afternoon trading occurred after President Trump threatened ‘massive’ tariffs on China and indicated that he had no need to meet with Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

The world’s largest cryptocurrency declined below $118,000, losing as much as 3% during the sell-off.

Ether (ETH-USD) also sank 6%.

Stock market losses accelerated with less than one hour left of trading.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) sank more than 600 points, or 1.5%, while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) tumbled 2%.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) fell 2.2% as semiconductor and other tech stocks sank.

Cocoa futures (CC=F) were down more than 1.8% in midday trading on Friday, hovering around $5,838 per ton. If the losses hold through the closing bell, the trend will mark the longest streak of weekly losses for the soft commodity since May 1999, at eight weeks.

As chocolate makers have bought less cocoa in recent months to save money, the threat of an oversupply of the commodity through the end of 2025 and into 2026 has depressed prices since mid-August.

Excess rainfall in West Africa, the cocoa-growing capital of the world, and increases in prices paid by governments to cocoa farmers have encouraged higher production rates and further tamped down prices.

Commodity traders will be looking to next Thursday for third quarter grinding data from the European Cocoa Association — a key read on cocoa bean usage rates — as they watch for signs of where prices are headed.

Yahoo Finance’s Francisco Velasquez reports:

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Yahoo Finance’s Dan Howley reports:

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Oil was headed for steep losses on Friday as US-China trade tensions took a turn for the worse and a peace plan in Gaza alleviated concerns about a supply crunch.

Brent (BZ=F) dropped 3%, extending losses from the prior session. West Texas Intermediate (CL=F) also slid 3%.

President Trump on Friday threatened to slap “massive” tariffs on Chinese imports and said he saw no reason to meet with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, accusing Beijing of monopolizing the global supply of rare earth minerals.

Meanwhile, oil prices fell for the week after Israel approved a framework that would see Hamas release hostages in exchange for prisoners, a key step toward ending the conflict in Gaza.

Chinese stocks were hit on Friday after President Trump announced that he would not meet with Chinese leader Xi Jinping as scheduled at the APEC summit in South Korea in two weeks.

The meeting cancellation came as Trump threatened to impose “massive” tariffs on Chinese goods because of letters Beijing had sent to other countries related to controls on rare earth minerals.

E-commerce giant Alibaba (BABA) sank 6%, while tech giants Tencent (TCHEY) and Baidu (BIDU) also tumbled.

Shares of rare earth mineral-related stocks surged on Friday after President Trump announced that China was sending letters to other countries regarding export controls on these essential elements, which are necessary to make everything from electronics to weapons.

Shares of MP Materials (MP) rose 15%, while USA Rare Earth (USAR) also gained 15%.

Stocks rolled over on Friday after President Trump posted he is considering imposing a “massive increase” in tariffs on Chinese goods.

“Some very strange things are happening in China! They are becoming very hostile, and sending letters to Countries throughout the World, that they want to impose Export Controls on each and every element of production having to do with Rare Earths, and virtually anything else they can think of, even if it’s not manufactured in China,” Trump wrote on Friday.

“I have not spoken to President Xi because there was no reason to do so. This was a real surprise, not only to me, but to all the Leaders of the Free World. I was to meet President Xi in two weeks, at APEC, in South Korea, but now there seems to be no reason to do so,” he added.

“One of the Policies that we are calculating at this moment is a massive increase of Tariffs on Chinese products coming into the United States of America,” he said in the post.

Consumer sentiment was relatively unchanged in October.

The University of Michigan’s preliminary survey of consumer sentiment released Friday showed the headline consumer sentiment index came in at 55 for the month so far, above the 54 projected by economists polled by Bloomberg but a hair below the reading of 55.1 in September.

Still, consumer sentiment for the month fell far below the 70.5 reading in October 2024.

The October data also showed year-ahead inflation expectations dropped to 4.6% during the month from 4.7% the previous month. Economists had expected the figure to remain unchanged.

Long-term inflation expectations for the next five to 10 years remained steady at 3.7% as projected.

In September, survey results had shown consumers feeling worse about the economy than expected as they worried about the impact of Trump’s tariffs.

Joanne Hsu, the director of UMichigan’s consumer surveys, said of the fresh data Friday: “Pocketbook issues like high prices and weakening job prospects remain at the forefront of consumers’ minds.”

The latest look at consumer sentiment comes amid an ongoing US government shutdown, which has delayed the release of crucial federal data investors use to gauge the health of the economy.

Hsu said UMichigan’s data for the month to date has shown “little evidence that the ongoing federal government shutdown has moved consumers’ views of the economy thus far.”

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US stocks inched higher on Friday at the market open.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) moved up more than 0.2%, while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) nudged up over 0.1%.

The slight gains come after the Nasdaq and S&P 500 retreated from record highs Thursday amid an ongoing US government shutdown. The two major gauges were set for weekly gains Friday morning, while the Dow was on track for a weekly loss.

Here’s a look at some of the top stocks trending in premarket trading:

Intel (INTC) stock rose almost 2% before the bell on Friday. Intel unveiled its new Core Ultra series 3 processor on Thursday, the first chip built on its 18A process technology and manufactured at the new Fab 52 plant.

Elastic (ESTC) stock rose 10% in premarket trading on Friday. Bank of America (BAC) recently cut their price target for Elastic, citing tougher competition for AI workloads, which could crimp growth.

American Homes 4 Rent (AMH) shares rose 9% before the bell. Over the past month, its share price has fallen 6% and is down 13% year-to-date.

Qualcomm (QCOM) stock fell more than 3% before the bell on Friday following news that China has launched an antitrust investigation into the US chipmaker over its acquisition of Israel’s Autotalks.

Reuters reports:

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