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US stocks fell but pared steeper losses on Thursday after Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick hinted that more temporary exemptions are likely within the Trump administration’s current 25% tariff policy on Canada and Mexico.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) cut losses in half to fall around 0.5%, while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) dropped 0.8%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) dropped 0.9% as the major gauges pulled back from Wednesday’s rally.
Tech remains leading the retreat after Marvell’s (MRVL) quarterly sales forecast disappointed investors expecting a bigger AI payoff. Its shares sank over 16% in early trading, as fellow chipmakers Nvidia (NVDA), Broadcom (AVGO), and AMD (AMD) also lost ground.
At the same time, trade-war uncertainty persisted as investors weighed how far President Donald Trump would be willing to negotiate on tariffs.
On Thursday morning, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick hinted that goods and services within the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) are likely to be omitted for one month from the 25% tariffs implemented against those countries earlier this week.
Lutnick’s comments Thursday came a day after the Trump administration announced a one-month pause on Mexico and Canada duties for automakers.
Read more: Trump said to be eyeing agricultural exemptions after pausing auto tariffs
Meanwhile, investors assessed weekly jobless claims data released on Thursday morning showing 221,000 initial claims, down from 241,000 seen the week prior and below the 233,000 economists had expected. A recent run of soft economic data has spurred concerns that US economic growth is stalling, reviving the specter of stagflation.
LIVE 9 updates
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What does Nvidia stock chart say as sell-off continues?
Yahoo Finance’s Brian Sozzi reports:
Read more here.
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Lutnick says that goods and services compliant with USMCA may receive one-month tariff reprieve
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick hinted that goods and services that are compliant with the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) are likely to be omitted for one month from the 25% tariffs implemented against Mexico and Canada earlier this week.
“The reprieve is for one month,” Lutnick said in an interview with CNBC.
“It’s likely that it will cover all USMCA compliant goods and services, so that which is part of President Trump’s deal with Canada and Mexico are likely to get an exemption from these tariffs,” Lutnick said.
The major averages pared losses following Lutnick’s comments.
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Dow, S&P 500, Nasdaq fall as tech tanks on tariff worries, earning miss
The major averages opened lower on Thursday as investors assessed the impact of President Trump’s tariff policies and a disappointing sales outlook from Marvell (MRVL) weighed on tech stocks.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) fell about 0.9% while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) dropped 1.2%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) lost 1.8% led by losses of Nvidia (NVDA), Broadcom (AVGO), and AMD (AMD).
Tech is leading to the downside after Marvell’s (MRVL) quarterly sales forecast failed to calm anxieties over the AI payoff.
Thursday was shaping out to be a reversal from Wednesday’s session when stocks saw sharp gains after the Trump administration granted a temporary exemption to the Big Three automakers following the implementation of 25% levies against trading partners Canada and Mexico.
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Weekly unemployment claims fall, continuing claims move higher
Data from the Department of Labor released Thursday morning showed 221,000 initial jobless claims were filed in the week ending March 1, down from 241,000 the week prior and below the 233,000 economists had expected.
However, in a sign unemployed workers are taking longer to find a new job, continuing claims for unemployment benefits during the week ending Feb. 22 moved higher. 1.89 million claims were filed during the week, up from the 1.855 million the week prior. Continuing claims are hovering near a three-year high.
Additional data released Thursday morning showed announced job cuts soared in February to 172,017, their highest monthly level since July 2020, per job placement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas. This marked a 245% increase in layoff announcements from the month prior. The firm noted cuts from the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and “retail woes” drove the increase in job eliminations.
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Macy’s stock drops 3% premarket on cautious outlook
Macy’s (M) stock fell 3% premarket after the iconic retailer missed expectations for fourth quarter same-store sales growth and issued cautious guidance.
Several other retailers forecast weaker outlooks this week, as executives broadly see tariffs as having an impact on sales. But it comes at a critical point for Macy’s, which has been attempting a turnaround.
Yahoo Finance’s Brooke DiPalma reports:
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German bonds extend worst drop since 1990 as sell-off spreads worldwide
German bonds are selling off again as investors react to the country’s historic move to ramp up spending on defense as the US pulls its military support in Europe. The rout echoed through debt markets worldwide, pulling down prices.
Bloomberg reports:
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Alibaba stock gains as new Chinese AI tools spur buying
Alibaba shares are rising in premarket, up almost 3%, following a surge for the stock in Asia as local tech names got a boost from the arrival of several new AI models.
The moves come after China-based DeepSeek sent ripples through Silicon Valley with its bombshell release of a potentially lower-cost AI chatbot rival to ChatGPT.
Bloomberg reports:
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Trending tickers in after-hours trade on Wednesday
Marvell (MRVL)
S in AI circuitry company Marvell Technology tumbled 15% after the bell on Wednesday. This is despite beating revenue and earnings expectations in all four of the previous quarters. The fall shows investors’ demand for ever-higher growth from AI businesses.
Zscaler (ZS)
Data cybersecurity company Zscaler saw a 5% jump in shares in after-hours trade. The company surprised by trouncing revenue and earnings expectations by over 10%.
MongoDB (MDB)
MongoDB shares saw the ire of disappointed traders. Despite posting positive revenue and earnings the company failed to beat Wall Streets expectations. Shares in the cloud-based database specialist dived 16% post-market close.
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Alibaba stock leaps on DeepSeek rival reveal
Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.’s (BABA) stock soared with the largest single-day jump in weeks after the company revealed a model that it claims provides DeepSeek-level performance while requiring far less data.
Bloomberg reports:
