Initial market indications early Wednesday evening were that many investors had expected Trump’s tariffs to be far less expansive.
Global markets reacted sharply and swiftly after President Donald Trump revealed his much-anticipated tariff plans Wednesday, with investors fleeing U.S. stock indexes and stocks of companies that rely on global supply chains plummeting.
S&P 500 futures, which indicate where it is likely to open Thursday, plunged 3%. Nasdaq 100 futures sold off by more than 4%, and Dow futures slid about 1,000 points, or 2%.
Those indexes just endured their worst quarter in years in large part because of growing concern about the economic impacts of Trump’s expected tariff plan.
“President Trump just finished his tariff speech at the White House and we would characterize this slate of tariffs as ‘worse than the worst case scenario’ the Street was fearing,” Dan Ives, an analyst at the investment firm Wedbush Securities, wrote in a note sent Wednesday.
That could make things very difficult for large U.S. companies that are deeply integrated into the global economy. Shares of Apple dropped nearly 7%, Amazon 6% and Walmart 5%.
Nike, which produced 50% of its footwear in Vietnam last year, plummeted 7% in after-hours trading.
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