Wall Street wobbles as markets navigate through tariff uncertainty

NEW YORK: Wall Street’s main indexes declined on Tuesday as investors tried to navigate the uncertainty surrounding US President Donald Trump’s tariffs, while awaiting the Federal Reserve’s interest rate decision this week.

Trump said late on Monday he would announce pharma tariffs over the next two weeks, his latest action on levies that have roiled global financial markets over the past few months.

Eli Lilly and Merck slipped over 3% each, while Pfizer was down 1.7% after the news.

Indexes, however, were well above their session lows after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the administration could announce some trade agreements as early as this week.

“The market is going to seesaw depending on tariff discussions... we are susceptible to the news cycle with a lack of actual fundamental things to trade on,” said Mark Hackett, chief market strategist at Nationwide.

“Until we get some news of actual deals being signed, we’re going to be susceptible to these fluctuations.”

Tariff-driven uncertainty has led consumers, businesses and even the Fed to adopt a wait-and-watch mode.

The Fed starts its two-day meeting on Tuesday, with the central bank widely expected to stay put on interest rates. Comments from policymakers will be scrutinized for any clues hinting at where they stand on monetary policy easing this year.

Traders are pricing in a 25-basis-point cut only in July, according to data compiled by LSEG.

At 11:42 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 168.75 points, or 0.40%, to 41,053.76, the S&P 500 lost 20.39 points, or 0.36%, to 5,629.99 and the Nasdaq Composite lost 90.30 points, or 0.51%, to 17,753.95.

Most S&P 500 sectors were trading in the red, with healthcare the biggest loser, down 1.7%.

In a bright spot, Constellation Energy jumped 9.8% after its quarterly results, pushing utilities up 1.5%.

Shares of data analytics firm Palantir fell 12.5%, to the bottom of the S&P 500, as investors were unimpressed by the company’s modest revenue beat and in-line profit.

Ford Motor was the latest to suspend its annual outlook on Monday, joining a host of companies that withdrew their forecasts in April. The carmaker’s shares reversed premarket losses and were last up about 4% in choppy trading.

Hackett said investors were uncertain and confused as Ford was in a complicated tariff situation but Trump’s comments last week on the auto industry being a big beneficiary was a positive.

Against the uncertain trade backdrop, businesses boosted imports of goods in March, pushing the country’s trade deficit to a record high of $140.5 billion.

The S&P 500 posted 7 new 52-week highs and 6 new lows while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 17 new highs and 75 new lows.