US stocks' bid for a rebound lost steam on Wednesday as signs of an escalation in the US-Canada trade war eclipsed a better-than-expected inflation reading .
The Dow Jones Industrial Average ( ^DJI ) was roughly 0.2% lower after reversing course. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 ( ^GSPC ) was up about about 0.6%, while the Nasdaq Composite ( ^IXIC ) gained nearly 1.4%. Both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq were off their highs on the day after news on tariffs sent stocks lower.
On Wednesday, the latest data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed that the "core" Consumer Price Index (CPI) — which strips out the more volatile costs of food and gas — rose 3.1% in February, down from 3.3% seen the month prior. This marked the lowest yearly increase in core CPI since April 2021.
But Trump's fast-moving tariff policy is front of mind after uncertainty fueled another volatile session ending in losses on Tuesday.
Canada has imposed tariffs on $21 billion of US goods in response to President Trump's across-the-board duties on steel and aluminum, which went into effect on Wednesday. The EU earlier made its own response, placing matching counter-tariffs on $28 billion in US goods from April.
A rebound in Big Tech stayed strong despite the selling action in the major indexes, with Nvidia ( NVDA ) and Tesla ( TSLA ) both up more than 7%.
Read more: The latest on Trump's tariff plans
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