Wall Street Extends Losses as Recession Fears Mount
U.S. markets are continuing to slide this afternoon after a sharply lower open. The S&P 500 is currently down 4%, the tech-heavy Nasdaq has fallen 4.9%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 3.6%, as investor anxiety over the global economic outlook intensifies.
Doug Ramsey, Chief Investment Officer at Minneapolis-based Leuthold Group, told Bloomberg: “I wouldn’t say a recession is inevitable, but the deeper the correction runs, recession odds will increase. The current decline is the first leg down in a new bear market, not simply a correction.”
Elias Haddad, analyst at Brown Brothers Harriman, echoed the concern, warning that the trade war “could now get nasty and that is spooking investors,” citing a “heightened risk of either recession or stagflation.”
He added: “We could see the correction bottom out when we have firm evidence that we’re not falling into recession.”
Bloomberg estimates that $1.7 trillion in market value was erased from the S&P 500 Index at the start of trading today, underscoring the scale of investor concerns that President Trump’s new tariffs could tip the U.S. economy into recession.
Among the biggest losers on the Dow Jones Industrial Average are Nike, down 11%, and Apple, which has dropped 9%. American Express fell 8%, while Amazon and Goldman Sachs declined 7.5% and 7.4%, respectively.
Other major names also posted sharp losses, including Boeing (-6.8%), Nvidia (-5.4%), JPMorgan (-5%), Caterpillar (-4.9%), Home Depot (-4.8%), Walt Disney (-4.6%), and Salesforce (-4.2%).
US Dollar Slides to Six-Month Low Amid Market Turmoil
The U.S. dollar continues to face pressure, falling 2.2% today against a basket of major currencies, marking its lowest level in six months.
The greenback has dropped sharply against the euro, which has surged nearly two and a half cents to $1.109—its strongest level since early October last year.
