US stock indices slumped on Monday with tech-heavy Nasdaq declining by 4% after President Donald Trump’s comments over the weekend stoked fears that a trade war could spark an economic recession.
At close, the S&P 500 fell 155.64 points, or 2.70%, to 5,614.56 for its lowest closing level since September and its biggest daily percentage decline since December.
The Nasdaq Composite fell 727.90 points, or 4.00%, to 17,468.32, for its lowest close since September. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 890.01 points, or 2.08%, to 41,911.71, for its lowest close since November 4.
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.”
“It takes a little time. It takes a little time,” he added.
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.
In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.21% from 4.32% late on Friday.
Gainers and losers
Among megacap stocks, Nvidia fell 0.70%, Meta Platforms and Amazon.com were down 0.44% and 0.35% respectively.
Apple stock was down 0.60% and Microsoft stock price remains unchanged.
Elon Musk’s Tesla fell 0.81%, after UBS cut its forecast for the automaker’s first quarter deliveries and lowered its price target on the stock.
Among banks, JPMorgan Chase and Goldman Sachs stocks were up 0.25% and 0.06% respectively.
Crypto stocks edged down tracking lower bitcoin prices. MicroStrategy slid 11.7%, Coinbase fell 10.2% and Riot declined 5.2%.
Bullion
Gold prices eased as US dollar rose slightly.
Spot gold fell 0.2% to $2,905.05 an ounce at 1201 GMT, while US gold futures were steady at $2,911.60.
Spot silver was unchanged at $32.55 an ounce.
Crude oil
Oil prices slid on signs of economic weakness in the world’s two biggest crude consumers.
West Texas Intermediate fell to trade below $67 a barrel, down more than 15% from its mid-January peak.