FX.co ★ Tech Stocks Lead US Sell-Off Amid Trade Concerns

On Friday, U.S. stocks experienced a significant decline as President Donald Trump unsettled financial markets by threatening a substantial increase in tariffs on Chinese imports and suggesting the potential cancellation of his scheduled meeting with President Xi Jinping. The S&P 500 fell by 2.2%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped over 700 points, equivalent to a 1.5% decrease, and the Nasdaq plummeted by 2.9%, wiping out the week’s gains despite having reached record highs recently. Trump's accusations against China centered on their alleged use of rare earth elements to gain a stronghold in global markets, compounded by his criticism of Beijing's new export restrictions, raising fears of renewed U.S.–China trade tensions. This decline was notably led by technology and semiconductor stocks, with Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) falling by 6.6%, Nvidia by more than 2%, and Qualcomm by over 6% following an antitrust investigation in China. The market's reaction was further exacerbated by the ongoing U.S. government shutdown, now lasting for ten days, which has postponed the release of economic data and heightened investor uncertainty. Over the course of the week, both the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq have decreased by more than 1%, while the Dow Jones is poised to finish 2% lower.