Wall Street ended sharply lower on Thursday and the S&P 500 confirmed it is in a correction after cool inflation data was overshadowed by fears that the escalating, hydra-headed tariff war being waged by the US against its biggest trading partner could reignite inflation and tip the economy into recession.
Advertisement
A broad sell-off sent all three major US stock indexes tumbling, with losses in tech and tech-related megacap shares dragging the Nasdaq down most.
“Sentiment’s terrible,” Mike Dickson, head of research at Horizon Investments in Charlotte, North Carolina. “There’s new tariff headlines every day, and that’s weighing on things.”
“And you’re seeing it most acutely in some of the more sensitive areas of the market like the fairly inflated Magnificent 7,” Dickson added. “It doesn’t feel great out there right now.”
The S&P 500 closed more than 10 per cent below its February 19 record closing high, confirming the bellwether index has been in a correction since then.
Advertisement
On March 6, the Nasdaq confirmed it is in a correction by closing 10.4 per cent lower than its all-time closing high reached on December 16.