Stock Market Today: Stocks lower, automakers slump on latest tariff salvo

Wall Street is broadly lower in mid-afternoon trading

Mar 27, 2025 - 18:42
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Stock Market Today: Stocks lower, automakers slump on latest tariff salvo

U.S. stocks were lower in midday Thursday trading, as investors reacted to a fresh set of Trump administration tariffs, which are likely to add to the market's unease about growth and earnings prospects heading into the second quarter. At last check, the Dow 30, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq were all less than 0.5% lower.

Updated at 1:35 PM EDT

Driving down

Stocks are moving higher into the session, with the S&P 500 up a modest 15 points, or 0.27%, but automakers remain firmly in the red following President Trump's sector-specific tariff unveiling and the prospect of reprisal levies on U.S. goods from rival countries. 

General Motors shares were last marked 6.5% lower at $47.66 each while Ford fell 2.1% to $10.08 each. 

Related: Top analyst overhauls GM, Ford stock prices targets amid tariff risk

Updated at 9:38 AM EDT

Soft open

The S&P 500 was marked 31 points, or 0.54% lower in the opening minutes of trading, with the Nasdaq down 103 points, or 0.58%.

The Dow fell 182 points while the mid-cap Russell 2000 retreated 9 points, or 0.42% following the better-than-expected weekly jobless claims data.

The monthly jobs report may paint a different picture, but today’s jobless claims number suggests the labor market is still on solid ground," said Chris Larkin, managing director for trading and investing at E*Trade from Morgan Stanley. 

"For markets, though, the question is whether anything will be able to rise above the noise of the tariff story," he added. "In the near-term, the most likely scenario is more choppy trading."