Stock Gains Disappear, Dow Drops 280 on Tariff Bombshell
President Donald Trump again shook markets with his Twitter feed
After spending the first half of the day in positive territory, stocks fell off a cliff following President Donald Trump's tweets that the U.S. will be placing 10% tariffs on $300 billion ofgoods coming from China. The Dow was up more than 300 points at its intraday peak on hopes for more rate cuts, but ultimately closed with a nearly 300-point deficit. It was similar price action for the Nasdaq and S&P, which are now on four-day losing streaks, even though Trump added he wants a "positive dialogue with China." Oil prices also sold off as the tariff news sparked more fears for a global economic slowdown, with liquid gold notching its biggest daily loss in roughly four years.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
7-figure options bet crosses on CVS. 2 stocks that could keep struggling in the short term. Why call volume popped on this Dow component. Plus, drug stock pops on FDA news; Hasbro traders double their money; and 2 reasons to short this oil stock in August.The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI - 26,583.42) crashed in the second half of the day, losing 280.9 points, or 1.1%. Seven Dow components managed gains, lead by IBM's 1.4% win. Pacing the 23 losers was Goldman Sachs (GS) with a 3.9% slide.
The S&P 500 Index (SPX - 2,953.56) fell 26.8 points, or 0.9%, while the Nasdaq Composite (IXIC - 8,111.12) shed 64.3 points, or 0.8%.
The Cboe Volatility Index (VIX - 17.87) added 1.8 point, or 10.9%.
5 Items on our Radar Today
Facebook (FB) was under pressure today due to reports that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is looking into the company's purchases of Instagram and WhatsApp. The agency is said to be considering whether Facebook bought the companies to prevent competition. (CNBC)Competition continues to heat up in the veggie burger space, with Burger King today announcing it'll be offering Beyond Meat (BYND) competitor Impossible Foods' plant-based Whopper across the country starting next week. The company has piloted the burger in St. Louis locations. (USA Today)The FDA news that helped this drug stock today.How options traders doubled their money on Hasbro. 2 reasons to sell this oil stock in August.
Data courtesy of Trade-Alert
Oil Prices Collapse on Tariff News
Oil prices had one of their worst days in over four years, sliding alongside equities on the tariff news. September crude futures closed down $4.63, or 7.9%, to end at $53.95 per barrel -- snapping a five-day win streak, and logging their worst daily performance since February 2015.
Gold struggled before Trump's tariff bombshell, with December futures falling $5.40, or 0.4%, to settle at $1,432.40 an ounce. However, gold futures rallied sharply after hours as stocks sold off.