The US stock markets collapsed on Monday after President Donald Trump’s tariffs drove away investors.
The fears of economic downturn have wiped out $4 trillion from the S&P 500’s peak the previous month.
The benchmark S&P 500 fell 2.7 percent, its biggest daily drop of the year. It also closed down 8.6 percent from its February 19 record high.
The Nasdaq Composite was down 4 percent, its largest one-day decline since September 2022.
Meanwhile, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell nearly 900 points, or over 2 percent.
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Tech stocks down
The S&P 500’s technology sector dropped 4.3 percent, while Apple and Nvidia both fell about 5 percent. Tesla tumbled 15 percent, shedding about $125 billion in value.
Other risk assets were also punished, with Bitcoin dropping 5 percent.
The S&P 500 has given up all gains recorded since Trump’s November 5 election.
Trump’s policies
The markets have been spooked by Trump’s policies, which have spelled uncertainty for businesses, consumers and investors. The tariff moves against major trading partners such as Canada, Mexico and China can be seen as playing a major role.
The S&P 500 saw back-to-back gains of over 20 percent in 2023 and 2024, led by megacap technology and tech-related stocks such as Nvidia and Tesla that have struggled so far in 2025, dragging major indexes.
Asked over the weekend whether he was expecting a recession in 2025, Trump told Fox News Channel: “I hate to predict things like that. There is a period of transition because what we’re doing is very big. We’re bringing wealth back to America. That’s a big thing.”
On Friday, Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell said that the US economy was on a strong footing, but also underscored the need for caution on lowering borrowing costs.
