U.S. Stocks Under Pressure As White House Confirms Tariffs To Take Effect

Stocks moved mostly higher early in the session on Friday but have given back ground over the course of the trading day. The major averages have pulled back well off their highs of the session, with the Dow and the S&P sliding into negative territory.

Currently, the major averages are turning in a mixed performance. While the Nasdaq remains up 38.35 points or 0.2 percent at 19,720.10, the S&P 500 is down 16.12 points or 0.3 percent at 6,055.05 and the Dow is down 342.75 points or 0.8 percent at 44,539.38.

The major averages showed a notable move to the downside in recent trading after White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed tariffs will be levied against major U.S. trading partners beginning Saturday.

Leavitt said the Trump administration will be implementing 25 percent tariffs on Mexico and Canada as well as a 10 percent duty on China.

Earlier in the day, stocks benefited from a positive reaction to earnings news from tech giant Apple (AAPL), which reported fiscal first quarter results that exceeded analyst estimates on both the top and bottom lines.

Shares of Apple have pulled back well off their best levels since then, however, and are currently up just 1.1 percent.

Buying interest was also generated in reaction to a closely watched Commerce Department report showing consumer prices in the U.S. increased in line with economist estimates in the month of December.

Meanwhile, a slump by shares of Chevron (CVX) is weighing on the Dow, with the energy giant plunging by 4.1 percent after reporting weaker than expected fourth quarter earnings.

Sector News

Despite the pullback by the broader markets, networking stocks continue to turn in a strong performance, with the NYSE Networking Index climbing by 1.8 percent.

Notable strength also remains visible among networking stocks, as reflected by the 1.1 percent gain being posted by the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index.

On the other hand, oil stocks have shown a significant move to the downside, dragging the NYSE Arca Oil Index down by 2.1 percent.

Housing stocks have also come under pressure amid an increase by treasury yields, resulting in a 2.0 percent slump by the Philadelphia Housing Sector Index.

Other Markets

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance on Friday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index edged up by 0.2 percent and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200Index climbed by 0.5 percent, while South Korea’s Kospi slid by 0.8 percent.

Meanwhile, the major European markets all moved modestly higher on the day. While the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index rose by 0.3 percent, the French CAC 40 Index inched up by 0.1 percent and the German DAX Index closed just above the unchanged line.

In the bond market, treasuries have moved to the downside over the course of the session. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is up 3.3 basis points at 4.545 percent.

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