Wall Street stocks showed mixed results in early trading on Wednesday as markets reacted to the latest round of tariff increases from the United States, along with retaliatory measures from China and the European Union.
Around 15 minutes into the session, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down by 0.5 per cent at 37,465.28.
The broad-based S&P 500 saw a slight dip of 0.1 per cent to 4,976.88, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index gained 0.7 per cent, reaching 15,367.67.
The uncertain start to the trading day followed a volatile session on Tuesday. Stocks rallied in the morning due to optimism over potential trade deals, only to fall sharply in the afternoon after the White House confirmed plans to significantly raise tariffs on China.
New US tariffs of 104 per cent on Chinese goods came into effect early Wednesday, prompting Beijing’s finance minister to respond by raising tariffs to 84 per cent on US goods.
In addition, the European Union imposed its first countermeasures against President Donald Trump’s tariff policies, targeting more than €20 billion worth of US products, including soybeans, motorcycles, and beauty items.
Beyond concerns over a potential recession triggered by the escalating tariffs, investors were also rattled by rising Treasury bond yields.
“The safe-haven bid seems to have vanished, and the reasons behind it are not entirely clear, which itself is unsettling for investor confidence,” said Briefing.com analyst Patrick O’Hare.
He suggested that concerns about foreign selling and the need for cash to cover margin calls could be contributing factors.
US stocks briefly turned positive after President Trump posted a message on social media encouraging investors to “BE COOL…THIS IS A GREAT TIME TO BUY!!!” However, the market quickly returned to its previous level within moments.