SPX: Tariffs 2.0 slams marketSPX stumbles as trade tensions resurface, feeding volatility into Friday's close. Friday was a painful day on financial markets, with a correction of 2,71%. For one more time it all started with the announcement on social networks of the US President that the US will impose 100% tariffs on imports from China starting November 1st. The rest is history - around $2 trillion from markets was wiped out. A similar situation occurred in April this year, when the never-ending story about tariffs started. Finally, the market settled that around 40% tariffs on imports from China would not impact the US economy at the higher level. However, analysts are estimating that the 100% tariffs might hurt the US economy more severely.
Semiconductor stocks like Nvidia and AMD led Friday’s market decline. Nvidia fell 5% amid uncertainty over its efforts to gain approval from the U.S. and China to sell downgraded AI chips. AMD, which had recently driven the tech rally, dropped nearly 8%. Apple and Tesla also saw sharp losses, down 3% and 5% respectively. However, the pullback wasn’t limited to China-exposed names, it was a broad-based sell-off, with 424 of the S&P 500 stocks closing in the red. The magnitude of the drop forced institutional investors to de-risk across the board, selling other positions to cover losses and raise cash as tech dragged portfolios lower. Only a few defensive names, including Walmart and tobacco-related stocks, managed to end the day slightly higher.
The current question is what does Monday bring? On one side, investors might continue to perceive tariffs impact negatively, so the correction might continue. On the opposite side are investors who will be in the mood of wait-and-see if a current threat of 100% tariffs will actually come to effect, or some sort of agreement on the state levels will be achieved.
