Wall Street Slips as Trump’s Tariff Deadline Looms, Tesla Plunges/ Newslooks/ WASHINGTON/ J. Mansour/ Morning Edition/ U.S. stocks slipped Monday as investors braced for President Trump’s looming tariff deadline. Tesla plunged nearly 8% after Elon Musk announced plans for a new political party. Markets remain cautious about potential trade disruptions and rising costs in key sectors.
Quick Look
- S&P 500 down 0.3%, near record highs
- Tesla tumbles 7.9% amid Musk-Trump feud
- Trump tariffs may hit Aug. 1 without deals
- Health sector stocks drop on rising costs
- Oil prices edge higher after OPEC+ production news
Wall Street Slips as Trump’s Tariff Deadline Looms, Tesla Plunges
Deep Look
U.S. stocks opened lower Monday, with investors growing cautious ahead of a looming tariff deadline set by the Trump administration, which is pressuring trading partners to secure agreements before Wednesday.
The S&P 500 slipped 0.3% early in the session after last week’s holiday-shortened trading pushed the index to record highs. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 96 points, or 0.2%, while the Nasdaq composite lost 0.5%.
Bond yields were mixed, with the yield on the 10-year Treasury edging up to 4.37% from 4.34% late Thursday.
Tesla shares sank 7.9%, marking the biggest drop among S&P 500 companies, as tensions between CEO Elon Musk and President Donald Trump flared anew. Over the weekend, Musk—who was previously a major Trump ally—announced plans to create a third political party in response to Republicans’ newly passed spending bill.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration was poised to begin sending notices to various countries as early as Monday, warning that new tariffs could go into effect on August 1. However, Trump and his trade advisers indicated that the president might extend the deadline if nations continue making concessions and negotiating seriously.
Analysts at Nomura noted that markets will closely watch which countries receive the letters, the tariff rates proposed, and the timing of potential implementation.
Most sectors in the S&P 500 were in negative territory, with technology and consumer stocks leading the declines. Oracle fell 2.5%, and Chipotle Mexican Grill dropped 2.2%.
Health insurers were also under pressure. Molina Healthcare slumped 6% after trimming its profit outlook due to surging costs. UnitedHealth Group similarly warned earlier this year of rising expenses, which led to a sharp stock decline in April.
The market’s subdued start comes after a strong rally last week, fueled in part by a better-than-expected U.S. jobs report that propelled major indexes to new highs.
In commodities, oil prices wavered following news that OPEC+ had agreed to boost production by 548,000 barrels per day in August. U.S. benchmark crude was up 0.5%, while Brent crude gained 1%.
European stock indexes were mostly in positive territory Monday, while Asian markets largely finished the day lower.
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