Wall Street tumbles as fresh data fuels inflation fear

By Noel Randewich and Pranav Kashyap

(Reuters) - Wall Street stocks ended sharply lower on Friday, with selloffs in Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN), Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) and other technology heavyweights, after U.S. data stoked fears of weak economic growth and high inflation as the Trump administration ratchets up tariffs.

U.S. consumer spending rebounded less than expected in February while a measure of underlying prices increased the most in 13 months.

Adding to concerns, a University of Michigan survey showed consumers’ 12-month inflation expectations soared to the highest in nearly 2-1/2 years in March, and they expect inflation to remain elevated beyond the next year.

That data fueled fears that a rush of tariff announcements from U.S. President Donald Trump since taking office in January will boost prices of imported goods, drive inflation and deter the Federal Reserve from cutting interest rates.

Inflation and tariff worries sent shares of Wall Street’s most valuable companies sharply lower, with Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) falling 2.7%, Microsoft losing 3% and Amazon off 4.3%.

"One of the other big cautionary points for investors is that the inflation impact of tariffs has yet to show up in the data, which is why we believe this is the calm before the tariff storm, with inflation likely to head more north than south in the coming months," said Greg Bassuk, CEO at AXS Investments in New York.

The S&P 500 declined 1.97% to end at 5,580.94 points.

The Nasdaq fell 2.70% to 17,322.99 points, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 1.69% to 41,583.90 points.

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Ten of the 11 S&P 500 sector indexes declined, led lower by communication services, down 3.81%, followed by a 3.27% loss in consumer discretionary.

Interest rate futures suggest traders see a 76% likelihood that the Fed will cut interest rates by 25 basis points by its June meeting, according to CME FedWatch.

With Friday’s losses, the S&P 500 is down about 9% from its record high close on February 19. The Nasdaq is down around 14% from its record high close on December 16.

"The problem is we don’t know the rules and businesses really struggle with that," said Bob Doll, chief executive officer of Crossmark Investments.

"Part of the economic weakness we’re experiencing and likely to see more of is a function of individuals and businesses saying, ’I’m not quite sure what tomorrow’s going to bring, so I’ll just be a little more cautious.’"

An index tracking interest rate-sensitive banks fell 2.3%.

The CBOE volatility index rose almost 3 points to a one-week high.

CoreWeave’s shares opened nearly 3% below their offer price in the Nvidia-backed artificial intelligence infrastructure company’s Nasdaq debut on Friday. That weak debut could crush hopes of a meaningful recovery in stock market listings, especially as equity markets grapple with tariff-related turmoil.

Trump’s steadfast commitment to a 25% tariff on auto imports, set to take effect next week, weighed on auto stocks for a second day, with General Motors (NYSE:GM) down 1.1% and Ford losing 1.8%.

For the week, the S&P 500 fell 1.5%, the Nasdaq declined 2.6%, and the Dow fell about 1%.

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Attention now turns to a fresh round of tariffs the Trump administration is set to unveil on April 2, with Trump recently hinting that these measures might diverge from the straightforward tit-for-tat duties previously pledged.

Shares of Lululemon Athletica (NASDAQ:LULU) plunged 14% after the sportswear maker lowered its annual forecasts, citing unpredictability surrounding tariffs.

Mining companies Harmony (JO:HARJ) Gold and Gold Fields (NYSE:GFI) rallied 9.5% and 4.5%, respectively, on higher gold prices related to trade war concerns. [GOL/]

The S&P 500 is on track for its first quarterly decline in six quarters, while the tech-centric Nasdaq is set for its deepest quarterly drop since 2022.

UBS Global Wealth Management lowered its year-end target for the S&P 500 to 6,400 from 6,600.

Wolfspeed (NYSE:WOLF)’s slumped 52% a day after the chipmaker appointed a new CEO amid its struggles to improve its financial position.

Declining stocks outnumbered rising ones within the S&P 500 by a 4.5-to-one ratio.

The S&P 500 posted 10 new highs and 23 new lows; the Nasdaq recorded 35 new highs and 358 new lows.

Volume on U.S. exchanges was relatively light, with 14.3 billion shares traded, compared to an average of 16.2 billion shares over the previous 20 sessions.

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