Fri Feb 28 07:30:00 UTC 2025: ## Stock Market Plunges on Nvidia Dip and Trump’s Tariff Threats

**New York, NY** – Wall Street experienced a significant downturn on Thursday, driven by a combination of disappointing tech earnings and renewed concerns over President Trump’s escalating tariff policies. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite led the losses, plummeting 2.8%, while the S&P 500 fell 1.6% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.4%.

Nvidia (NVDA), a leading AI chipmaker, was a major factor in the market’s decline. While the company exceeded quarterly earnings expectations, its profit outlook for the next quarter fell short of analyst estimates, leading to an over 8% drop in its stock price. This fueled broader selling pressure within the semiconductor sector.

Adding to the negative sentiment, economic data released Thursday painted a picture of a slowing US economy. GDP growth remained at a revised 2.3% annualized pace for the last quarter, signaling a slowdown from the previous quarter. Furthermore, initial jobless claims jumped to 242,000, exceeding expectations and suggesting a weakening labor market. These figures cast doubt on the likelihood of imminent interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve.

President Trump’s renewed tariff threats further exacerbated market anxiety. He confirmed that tariffs against Mexico and Canada will proceed as scheduled on March 4th and reiterated plans for additional levies against China and the European Union. This fueled uncertainty and contributed to the overall market sell-off. Bitcoin, often viewed as a gauge of investor confidence in Trump’s policies, also experienced a decline.

While some sectors, such as energy and financials, performed relatively better, the overall market mood remained pessimistic as investors grappled with the confluence of negative economic indicators and the potential for a protracted trade war. Attention now turns to Friday’s release of the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) index, a key inflation gauge, for further insights into the direction of interest rates.

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