US STOCKS-Wall Street closes down, pares losses after Trump delays Mexico tariffs

Triumph

03/02/2025 21:00

* 
      Automakers, software companies cut losses on Mexico tariff
delay
    

        * 
      Wall Street's 'fear gauge' falls from one-week high
    

  
 (Updates at the close)
    By Abigail Summerville and Shashwat Chauhan
       Feb 3 (Reuters) - The major stock indexes closed lower
on Monday, but partly recovered from initial steeper losses as
U.S. President Donald Trump delayed tariffs on Mexico after his
orders to levy tariffs on three countries sparked a global
scramble to safe-haven assets earlier in the day.
    Trump said he has paused planned tariffs on Mexico for one
month after the nation agreed to reinforce its northern border
with 10,000 National Guard members to stem the flow of illegal
drugs, particularly fentanyl. 
    Over the weekend, Trump had announced hefty new tariffs of
25% on imports from Mexico and Canada, and 10% on China - which
he said may cause short-term pain for Americans.
    "Trump has been really serious that tariffs are going to be
a primary tool to achieve a number of different things," said
Carol Schleif, chief investment officer at BMO Family Office.
    "They're not going away and the ride is likely to be bumpy
in the short run. And it's clear the European Union is in his
sights too." 
    Analysts at Citi noted that "if tariffs persist, markets are
likely to move further (down) and inflationary effects will
emerge."
    
    
  
    According to preliminary data, the S&P 500  .SPX  lost 45.45
points, or 0.75%, to end at 5,995.01 points, while the Nasdaq
Composite  .IXIC  lost 235.21 points, or 1.20%, to 19,392.23.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average  .DJI  fell 124.47 points, or
0.27%, to 44,420.19.
  
    The 11 major S&P sectors were mixed, with defensive ones
such as healthcare  .SPXHC  and consumer staples  .SPLRCS 
leading gains while information technology  .SPLRCT  and
consumer discretionary  .SPLRCD  lost the most ground. 
    Legacy automakers like Ford  F.N  and General Motors  GM.N 
- which have been roiled by the impending tariffs - recouped
some of their losses.
    The Cboe Volatility Index  .VIX , known as Wall Street's
fear gauge, touched its highest level in a week before falling.
    The stock market had already been pulling back last week
after Chinese startup DeepSeek unveiled a breakthrough in cheap
artificial intelligence models that sank tech stocks. 
    Nvidia  NVDA.O  and a gauge of semiconductor stocks  .SOX 
fell. 
    "With the tariffs and the DeepSeek freak-out that you had
last week, you’ve got the shift going from the picks and shovels
of the technology buildout towards software. There’s some of
that parsing going on with a focus on software," Schleif said.
    The economically sensitive Russell 2000 smallcaps index
 .RUT  recovered from its three-week low.
    Treasury yields edged down as investors fled to safer assets
such as bonds and gold. Spot gold  XAU=  scaled an all-time
high.
    Several large companies report quarterly earnings this week,
with Tyson Foods  TSN.N  shares gaining after the meatpacker
raised its annual sales forecast, while IDEXX Laboratories
 IDXX.O  jumped after the animal diagnostics maker beat
fourth-quarter profit and revenue estimates.  
    On the data front, U.S. manufacturing grew for the first
time in more than two years in January, data from the Institute
for Supply Management showed. 

    <^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
America's biggest trade partners    https://reut.rs/40zB2vI
    ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^>
 (Reporting by Abigail Summerville in New York and Shashwat
Chauhan in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli, Maju Samuel
and Rod Nickel)
 ((Shashwat.Chauhan@thomsonreuters.com;))