Stocks fell sharply Tuesday as businesses and investors assessed the impact of newly imposed U.S. tariffs against leading trade partners.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 were down 1.5% and 1.3%, respectively, in early-afternoon trading, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.9%. Stocks were coming off steep declines on Monday—the S&P 500 posted its biggest one-day drop of 2025—amid growing concerns about the health of the economy and uncertainty about the impact of Trump administration policies.
Overnight, the U.S. imposed long-awaited 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico, while doubling the levy on goods imported from China to 20%. Beijing and Ottawa quickly announced retaliatory tariffs on a number of products, while Mexico said it would announce measures on Sunday. The White House argues that tariffs will lead to more investment and new manufacturing jobs in the U.S., while investors fear that the trade measures will spark inflation, slow economic activity and harm companies that do business around the world.
Target (TGT) shares were down more than 5% after the retailer reported better-than-expected earnings but warned that consumer uncertainty, as well as uncertainty around tariffs, would weigh on current-quarter results. Best Buy (BBY) shares plunged 15% after the electronics retailer released its quarterly results and said that tariffs would likely lead to price increases.
Financial services stocks were among the big decliners on Tuesday. Bank of America (BAC) and Citigroup (C) both fell more than 6%, while Wells Fargo (WFC), JPMorgan Chase (JPM), Goldman Sachs (GS) and American Express (AXP) also tumbled. The S&P 500 financial services sector was down 3.5%.
Shares of the world’s largest technology companies, which led Monday’s sell-off, were mixed in recent trading. Tesla (TSLA) shares were down more than 5% and have now lost one-third of their value since the start of the year. Microsoft (MSFT), Amazon (AMZN), Meta Platforms (META) and Broadcom (AVGO) also lost ground, while Apple (AAPL), Nvidia (NVDA) and Alphabet (GOOG) inched higher.
Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA) shares were up 8% after The Wall Street Journal reported that the pharmacy chain was close to a roughly $10 billion deal to be taken private.
The yield on 10-year Treasurys, which tends to fall when economic conditions weaken, was at 4.16% in recent trading, down from 4.18% at yesterday’s close. The yield, which affects borrowing on all sorts of costs, notably mortgages, is at its lowest level since early December.
Bitcoin was at $83,700, after rising to around $95,000 yesterday following an announcement by Trump that a crypto strategic reserve would be created.
Gold futures were up 0.9% at $2,930 an ounce, while West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures fell 0.8% to $67.80.
What the White House Expects to Accomplish With Tariffs
4 minutes ago
Commerce secretary Howard Lutnick made sweeping promises for what President Donald Trump’s tariff-heavy economic policies will accomplish.
Samuel Corum / Sipa/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Speaking in an interview with CNBC on Tuesday morning, Lutnick said the U.S. will have more manufacturing, lower taxes, a balanced federal budget and lower borrowing costs as a result of taxing imported goods.
Experts have warned that tariffs will push up the cost of living, but Lutnick dismissed those concerns as “whining and complaining.”
Read the full article here.
Best Buy Plunges as Retailers Cites Tariff, Inflation Concerns
40 minutes ago
Best Buy (BBY) shares plunged nearly 15% Tuesday morning to lead S&P 500 decliners as the electronics retailer warned that new tariffs and inflation will negatively impact sales.
In a transcript of its fiscal 2025 fourth-quarter earnings call supplied by AlphaSense, CEO Corie Barry explained that the company anticipates “our vendors across our entire assortment will pass along some level of tariff costs to retailers, making price increases for American consumers.”
Barry called the tariffs situation “highly dynamic” with “uncertainty about the duration.” The CEO added that Best Buy was “operating in an uneven environment and expected there would be industry pressure,” and that even though it believes consumers will remain resilient, they are “still dealing with high inflation.”
The comments came after the company reported fourth-quarter adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $2.58, with revenue falling nearly 5% year-over-year to $13.95 billion, in part because fiscal 2025 was 13 weeks long and fiscal 2024 was 14 weeks. Comparable store sales grew 0.5%. All three were better than Visible Alpha forecasts.
Best Buy sees full-year adjusted EPS of $6.20 to $6.60, revenue of $41.4 billion to $42.2 billion, and comparable store sales in the range of flat to up 2.0%. However, the company pointed out that its guidance did not take into account recently enacted or proposed tariffs. Analysts surveyed by Visible Alpha were looking for adjusted EPS of $6.60, revenue of $41.77 billion, and comparable store sales growth of 1.81%.
Target Warns About Consumer, Tariff Uncertainty
1 hr 50 min ago
Target (TGT) posted better-than-expected fourth-quarter results but warned that the uncertainty around tariffs would weigh on current-quarter results.
The company reported fourth-quarter adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $2.41 on revenue that declined 3% year-over-year to $30.92 billion. Analysts polled by Visible Alpha expected $2.26 and $30.77 billion, respectively.
Target’s comparable sales rose 1.5%, above projections of 1.39% growth. In January, the company lifted its comparable sales projection to 1.5% growth from “approximately flat” following Q3 on the back of a stronger-than-expected holiday shopping season.
“In light of ongoing consumer uncertainty and a small decline in February Net Sales, combined with tariff uncertainty and the expected timing of certain costs within the fiscal year, the Company expects to see meaningful year-over-year profit pressure in its first quarter relative to the remainder of the year,” Target said.
For the full year, Target sees net sales growth “in a range around 1 percent,” comparable sales growth “in a range around flat,” and adjusted EPS between $8.80 and $9.80. Analysts were looking for sales growth of 2.66%, comparable sales growth of 1.81%, and adjusted EPS of $9.30.
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Target shares were down more than 5% in early trading and have lost nearly a quarter of their value over the past 12 months.
Walgreens Jumps as Company Nears Deal to be Taken Private
3 hr 15 min ago
Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA) shares are jumped in premarket trading Tuesday after a report indicated the troubled drugstore chain is nearing a deal with Sycamore Partners to be taken private for around $10 billion.
According to The Wall Street Journal, citing people familiar with the matter, the drugstore company and the private equity firm are targeting a completion of the transaction as soon as Thursday barring a “last-minute snag” that derails the deal. The Journal reported that Sycamore would pay between $11.30 a share and $11.40 a share in cash for Walgreens and the deal would include “contingent value rights that would increase the value if certain targets are later reached.”
Walgreens shares were up more than 5% at $10.80 ahead of the opening bell.
The Journal also reported that if the deal passes, Sycamore would keep the core U.S. retail business and sell off or take public the other parts of the company.
Walgreens and Sycamore Partners didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
Walgreens shares had been rising this year on previous reports that the private-equity firm was in talks to take the drugstore chain private. The company has been struggling, announcing in October a plan to shutter some 1,200 “underperforming” stores over the next three years and temporarily suspending its quarterly dividend to conserve cash earlier this year.
Walgreens shares have gained 10% this year but have lost half their value in the 12 months through Monday.
Futures Point to Lower Open for Major Indexes
3 hr 44 min ago
Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were down 0.3%.
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S&P 500 futures were off 0.7%.
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Nasdaq 100 futures fell 0.9%.
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