June 19 (UPI) — The Dow Jones industrial average fell nearly 300 points on Tuesday as President Donald Trump threatened China with additional tariffs.
The Dow was down 287.26 points, or 1.15 percent, at the close of trading Tuesday after Trump promised to impose an additional $200 billion worth of tariffs on China if it retaliates for the fiscal penalties he imposed last week.
The S&P 500 also dropped 0.4 percent and the Nasdaq composite fell 0.3 percent as fears of a potential trade war with China flared up again following Trump’s statement.
Computer chip makers NVIDIA and Qualcomm fell 1.86 percent and 0.84 percent respectively on the Nasdaq as a result of their exposure to China.
Ford Motor fell 2.74 percent, while Boeing and Caterpillar each fell nearly 4 percent.
Bleakley Advisory Group Chief Investment Officer Peter Boockvar criticized Trump’s tactics in dealing with China and its poor impact on the stock market.
“The strategy now seems a trade war of attrition,” Boockvar said. “The means to that end is now going off the rails.”
The tension between the United States and China has regularly resulted in declines for the Dow, which continued a six-day losing streak with the drop Tuesday, the longest since March 2017.
Late last month the Dow fell 391.64 points after the White House said it would follow through on plans to impose tariffs on $50 billion worth of Chinese goods.
