The U.S. stock market in New York fell on the 13th (local time). The impact was caused by the increased market anxiety following President Donald Trump’s indication of retaliatory tariffs against the European Union (EU).
On this day, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 537.36 points (-1.30%) from the previous trading day at 40,813.57 on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). The Standard & Poor's (S&P) 500 index ended down 77.78 points (-1.39%) at 5,521.52, and the technology-focused Nasdaq index also closed down 345.44 points (-1.96%) at 17,303.01. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq fell 4.3% and 4.9%, respectively, just this week. The Dow also dropped 4.7% during the same period, marking its worst week since June 2022.
The decline in stock prices on this day was influenced by the trade war escalating between Trump and the EU over tariffs. After Trump imposed a 25% tariff on steel and aluminum, Europe announced retaliatory tariffs, and Trump threatened on the morning of the 13th via Truth Social to impose a 200% tariff on all alcoholic products imported from the EU. This was a retaliatory measure against the EU's 50% tariff on American whiskey. Trump also pressured that he would not change his mind about the reciprocal tariffs set to take effect on April 2.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Vessen said in an interview with CNBC on this day, "We are focused on the real economy. We do not worry about the slight volatility over the past three weeks," suggesting that there would be no government intervention to defend the stock market, which dampened investor sentiment. Secretary Vessen had also commented in a CNBC interview on the 7th that "the market and economy are addicted to government expenditure," and that there would be a "detox" period.
CNBC analyzed, "Market strategists are watching for a technical rebound after recent selling, but some believe that recent inflation data will not be sufficient for a significant rebound," and noted that "concerns about Trump's trade policies continue to remain a major residue on investor sentiment, raising questions about how the Federal Reserve will proceed with interest rates."