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Stocks moved lower on Friday as a mix of news related to tariffs and inflation worried traders to close out the week.
Major benchmarks took a leg lower during the session after President Donald Trump said he was planning reciprocal tariffs on trading partners. This could mean raising tariff levels across the board to equal rates charged the U.S.
The Dow Jones Industrials plummeted 444.23 points, or nearly 1%, to 44,303.40.
The S&P 500 dumped 57.58 points, or nearly 1%, to 6,025.99
The tech-heavy NASDAQ tumbled 268.59 points, or 1.4%, to 19,523.40
Amazon lost 4% after guidance from the e-commerce giant disappointed investors. The company called for revenue growth of 5% to 9% in the first quarter — its weakest growth on record. The outlook overshadowed top- and bottom-line beats in the fourth quarter. Alphabet continued to fall following somewhat disappointing results earlier in the week.
Meanwhile, January’s jobs report released Friday showed 143,000 jobs were added for the month, but traders were concentrating on other parts of the report. The unemployment rate actually fell to 4% from 4.1%, and December’s and November’s jobs figures were revised up significantly. Average hourly earnings for January were also higher than expected, raising inflation fears.
Consumer sentiment fell in February to 67.8, according to a preliminary reading of the University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment index. Economists polled by Dow Jones had expected 71.3.
Prices for the 10-year Treasury eased a bit, raising yields to 4.49% from Thursday’s 4.44%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices surged 41 cents to $71.02 U.S. a barrel.
Prices for gold gained $10.70 an ounce to $2,887.10 U.S.
