The S&P 500 fell 1.7% Tuesday, officially erasing all the gains it had accrued since Donald Trump was declared winner of the 2024 presidential election in November.
A second-straight day of heavy selling came as Trump made good on threats to impose sweeping tariffs on America’s largest trading partners.
A total of $3.4 trillion in value has now been wiped out since November 6, the day after the election was held, according to data from Bloomberg.
Other major indexes fell in tandem: The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite declined 1.5% — edging closer to correction territory, meaning it is close to being 10% lower than its last high; while the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.8%.
The biggest losers included automakers like GM and Ford, both of whom have significant manufacturing facilities in Mexico. Chipotle, which sources about half of its avocados from Mexico, slipped more than 2%.
Target and Best Buy were also down. Earlier Tuesday, the CEOs of both those companies warned prices for goods on their respective shelves would likely increase as a result of the new tariff measures.
Other major firms seeing significant declines included United Airlines, Royal Caribbean Cruises, Citigroup, and Dollar Tree.
Separately, Tesla saw major declines following a report that its China-made EV fell to their lowest level since August 2022. The stock is down some 30% year to date.
The sell-off comes amid other signs of a softening economy. A closely watched report of monthly manufacturing activity flashed warning signals in its latest measure, while consumer confidence indexes show Americans turning more cautious about their finances.
