S&P 500 Suffers Major Setback: Tariff Fears Trigger Market Sell-Off

The S&P 500 fell sharply on Tuesday, closing below 5,000 points for the first time in a year as tariff concerns weighed heavily on investor sentiment. With President Trump's tariffs set to take effect, the market's decline marked the biggest four-day percentage drop since the pandemic. Major indices, including the Dow Jones and Nasdaq, also faced significant losses.

The S&P 500 experienced a sharp decline on Tuesday, closing below the 5,000-point mark for the first time in almost a year. This comes as investor anxiety heightened ahead of a looming U.S. tariff deadline.

Initially, the index witnessed a rise of over 4% fueled by hopes that President Trump might soften his tariff stance. However, optimism dwindled as the White House confirmed that tariffs, particularly those targeting China, would go into force as planned.

This market turmoil has led some to speculate that the Federal Reserve might consider interest-rate cuts despite strong economic indicators. Meanwhile, upcoming earnings reports are likely to reflect the impact of these trade policies.

(With inputs from agencies.)