US stocks cratered on Friday, on track to build on a $2.5 trillion wipeout as China stoked trade-war fears and investors digested fresh jobs data and comments from Fed Chair Jerome Powell.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) pulled back 3.3%, or about 1,300 points. The blue-chip index was on pace to close in correction territory. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 (^GSPC) sank about 3.8%, as the broad-based benchmark was headed for its worst week since 2020. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) pared losses to drop 3.8%, after falling as much as 5%.
Stocks climbed off the lows of the session after President Trump posted on social media that Vietnam wants to cut its tariffs to zero if it can strike a deal with the US. Shares of sneaker maker Nike ( NKE ) climbed into positive territory following the post.
Stocks opened sharply lower on Friday after China said it will impose additional tariffs of 34% on all US products from April 10 — matching the extra 34% duties imposed by Trump on Wednesday.
That ramped up investor worries that countries are more likely to retaliate than negotiate, leading to a protracted global trade war.
Investors flocked to government bonds as the 10-year Treasury (^ TNX ) yield fell to 3.9%, nearing its lowest levels since September.
Economists are warning that with tariffs as-is, the risk of a US recession is rising . The monthly jobs report , unusually overshadowed Friday, showed a labor market that held steady ahead of Trump's biggest tariffs. The US added 228,000 jobs in March, beating estimates, though the unemployment rate ticked up to 4.2%.
In a speech on Friday, Federal Reserve Chair Powell said that "the tariffs are higher than anticipated" and "it's too soon to say" what the proper rate path should be. Traders have ramped up bets on interest rate cuts this year to five, as the Fed is expected to set its efforts to cool inflation aside to tackle the bigger risk of economic slowdown.
On Thursday, investors fled risk assets in the wake of the punishing reciprocal tariffs laid out by Trump, with markets worldwide going into a tailspin as US stocks booked their worst one-day sell-off since 2020 .
Trump, posting on Truth Social on Friday, added to fears by saying that his policies "will never change" and warning that China "played it wrong."
Read more: The latest on Trump's tariffs
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