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US stocks fell sharply on Friday as Wall Street grapples with President Trump’s escalating trade war and weighs signs of reinvigorated inflation pressures as consumer sentiment plummets.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) gave up 1.5%, while the benchmark S&P 500 (^GSPC) fell 1.7%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) dropped 2.5%.
In focus Friday morning was the release of the Personal Consumption Expenditures index, which includes the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge of “core” PCE. The reading showed prices increased more than expected last month, rising 0.4% month over month and 2.8% year over year, continuing a stubborn plateau on the path to the Fed’s target.
Meanwhile, US consumer sentiment in March plummeted to its lowest level since November 2022. The latest reading from the University of Michigan came in at 57, down from a 64.7 reading in the prior month.
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Stocks have had a roller coaster of a week, starting off on a high on hopes that Trump would temper his tariff plans and then abruptly diving on Wednesday upon news of new duties on auto imports.
Markets continued to slide Thursday as Wall Street digested Trump’s 25% levies on foreign cars along with more hawkish comments on what lies ahead in the trade war. April 2, the date when broad reciprocal tariffs are set to take effect, is looming large.
Read more: The latest on Trump’s tariffs
Fed officials have projected higher inflation and slower economic growth amid new tariffs, though Fed Chair Jerome Powell has reassured Wall Street that rising prices will likely be “transitory.”
But Powell’s words are fading into the background as Trump’s trade war escalates and more Fed officials say they aren’t exactly sure where the economy goes next, with one policymaker describing situation as “zero visibility” in a “dense fog.”
The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta’s GDPNow index now forecasts US gross domestic product (GDP) will fall 2.8% in the first quarter, compared to a previous -1.81% projection released two days ago.
LIVE 14 updates
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The Fed’s inflation dilemma just got more challenging as Trump’s new tariffs loom
Yahoo Finance’s Jennifer Schonberger reports:
Read more here.
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Stocks plummet, but gold soars past $3,100
Gold futures (GC=F) rose to a fresh record on Friday as tariff threats sparked fears of an escalating trade war, while the stock market plummeted.
Sticky inflation along with plummeting consumer sentiment prompted investors to continue buying up the safe haven asset. A weaker US dollar (DX-Y.NYB) has also supported higher gold prices.
Gold futures surpassed $3,115 ahead of the Trump administration’s reciprocal tariffs announcement on April 2. On Wednesday the President announced 25% levies on foreign-made autos .
The yellow metal is up more than 17% over the past quarter, on pace for its best year-to-date performance in nearly four decades.
Silver and copper also rose on Friday while the stock market fell to session lows,
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) dropped more than 500 points, or 1.2%. The benchmark S&P 500 (^GSPC) declined 1.5%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) decreased 2%.
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‘Magnificent 7’ stocks take a hit as markets sell off
The “Magnificent Seven” stocks ws under pressure on Friday as investors headed for the exits amid a broader market sell-off following a hot inflation print and tumbling consumer sentiment data.
Among the group’s biggest laggards were e-commerce giant Amazon (AMZN), EV leader Tesla (TSLA), and social media giant Meta (META), which all fell about 3%.
AI chip giant Nvidia (NVDA), Microsoft (MSFT), and Apple (AAPL) were also down.
Nearly all of the Magnificent Seven stocks were on track to end the quarter with losses. Only Meta is on track to close out the first three months of the year relatively flat.
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Consumer sentiment falls as labor market optimism continues to fade
Yahoo Finance’s Myles Udland reports that Americans continue to sour on the US economy:
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Stocks take leg lower amid falling consumer sentiment, hot inflation data
Stocks took a leg lower mid-morning on Friday after the final read on consumer sentiment for March came in lower than expected. The March sentiment index fell to 57 from 64.7 in February, according to data from the University of Michigan.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) fell nearly 400 points, or almost 1%, while the benchmark S&P 500 (^GSPC) declined 1.2%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) decreased 1.6%.
Earlier on Friday, investors received the latest print on Personal Consumption Expenditures. The index showed prices increased more than expected last month, rising 0.4% month over month and 2.8% year over year.
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3 reasons why Lululemon stock is getting hammered on earnings
Lululemon stock (LULU) tanked Friday after the athletic apparel company issued a softer-than-expected outlook and warned about risks from tariffs.
Shares of Lululemon were down 13% just after the market open.
Here are three reasons the stock is down, according to Yahoo Finance’s Brian Sozzi:
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Stocks slip as investors digest tariff threats, inflation data in focus
US stocks opened lower on Friday as investors assessed the latest inflation data and anticipated reciprocal tariffs expected to be announced next week.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) fell 0.2%, while the benchmark S&P 500 (GSPC) dropped 0.3%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (IXIC) decreased 0.5%.
The latest Personal Consumption Expenditures index showed prices increased more than expected last month, rising 0.4% month over month and 2.8% year over year, continuing a stubborn plateau on the path to the Fed’s target.
Investors also digested President Trump’s auto tariff announcement this week, ahead of reciprocal levies on countries expected on April 2.
Meanwhile, gold futures (GC=F) rose to a fresh record past $3,100 as investors flocked to the safe haven asset on the heels of the hotter-than-expected inflation data and an escalating trade war.
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Fed’s preferred inflation gauge shows prices increased more than expected in February
The latest reading of the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge came in a bit hotter than expected on Friday. The report, released at 8:30 a.m. ET, comes as investors have been sensitive to incoming economic data as new tariffs and tariff threats have become the primary driver of markets.
Yahoo Finance’s Josh Schafer reports:
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Stocks are stuck in a tariff tug-of-war
In today’s Morning Brief, Yahoo Finance’s Hamza Shaban describes the tariff fog the market has been wading through:
Read more here or sign up to receive the Morning Brief daily in your inbox.
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US Steel stock jumps on potential $7 billion Nippon investment
United States Steel stock (X) jumped as much as 5% premarket on Friday after Semafor reported that Japanese steelmaker Nippon offered to raise its investment in US Steel facilities.
Nippon is considered investing $7 billion in US Steel’s Rust Belt factories, higher than the $2.7 billion Nippon previously committed, as the two steelmakers meet with White House officials during active merger talks.
Shares of Nippon Steel (5401.T) slid as much as 4%.
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Good morning. Here’s what’s happening today.
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Lululemon stock drops as tariffs and slow spending weigh on annual forecast
Lululemon’s (LULU) stock fell over 10% on Friday in premarket trading after the company reported that economic uncertainty and US tariffs on imports from China and Mexico were dampening demand for its pricey athleisure wear and negatively impacting its annual forecast.
Reuters reports:
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CoreWeave, the Nvidia-backed AI cloud computing company, has reduced its IPO offering in price and size.
CoreWeave’s initial public offering on Thursday raised $1.5 billion after setting the price of its shares at $40 each.
The $40 price point is significantly lower than the anticipated range of $47 to $55 per share. Potentially acting as a bellwether for a cooling period in the AI stock boom.
The size of the IPO was also taken down to 37 million shares from the initial 49 million shares for sale that CoreWeave and other early investors had planned to offer to the public.
The company lists publicly on the Nasdaq on Friday with the ticker (CRWV).
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Dollar holds as uncertainty stalls growth.
The US dollar continues (DX-Y.NYB) to hover ahead of potentially closing out a flat week. The currency is on track for a quarterly loss as tariffs continue to rock the international boat. Inflation pressure mounts as the Fed’s preferred gauge for inflation, the Personal Consumption Expenditure index, is due for release Friday.
Reuters reports:
