US stocks slide as tariff uncertainty persists
US stocks opened lower Thursday as investors and businesses grappled with the uncertain outlook of President Donald Trump's tariffs, data revealing the extent of recent layoffs and renewed concerns about spending on artificial intelligence.
The Dow opened lower by 400 points, or 0.94%. The broader S&P 500 opened 1.34% lower and the Nasdaq Composite was 1.92% lower.
Futures tied to the Dow had tumbled in early trading as new economic data showed unease in the labor market. US-based employers last month announced plans to slash 172,017 jobs, a 103% increase from January and the highest February total since 2009, according to Challenger, Gray & Christmas's latest monthly job cuts report.
Futures tied to the Nasdaq 100 also fell in early trading as companies focused on the AI trade posted mixed earnings results and guidance for this year. Marvell Technologies (MRVL), a chipmaker, fell 18% in early trading and opened sharply lower.
Nvidia (NVDA) and Palantir (PLTR) also slid, dragging the Nasdaq lower.
Chinese tech giant Alibaba on Thursday announced its own AI model, challenging upstart DeepSeek as well as OpenAI, raising questions about whether the AI boom in the US is worth the money that is being poured into it.
Thursday's decline is a reversal of the rally on Wednesday afternoon, highlighting that investors lack clarity and confidence about the next developments in the brewing trade war between the US and its biggest trading partners.
'For now, tariff-induced inflation amid slower growth could bring the economy dangerously close to stagflation,' said Jeffrey Roach, chief economist at LPL financial, in a note Wednesday.
Investors will be closely attuned to the government's monthly jobs report Friday, set to be released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics at 8:30 a.m. ET. and giving investors more insight about how the economy is doing.
'Extreme fear' has been the sentiment driving investors for the past week, according to CNN's Fear and Greed Index.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
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