Last week on Wall Street, stock prices fell due to a series of changes in the White House and the risks of a trade war following the announcement of new tariffs on imports of Chinese products into the U.S., which also made investors cautious on other global stock exchanges.
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones slipped 1.6 percent last week to 24,946 points, while the S&P 500 fell 1 percent to 2,752 points, and the Nasdaq index dropped 1.3 percent to 7,481 points.
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The decline in stock prices is a result of investors’ fears of a trade war outbreak after U.S. President Donald Trump announced new tariffs on imports of Chinese products into the U.S.
The U.S. government is pressuring China to reduce its trade surplus with the U.S. by $100 billion, the White House stated on Wednesday. Therefore, the introduction of tariffs up to $60 billion on imports of Chinese products is being considered, primarily targeting the technology and telecommunications sectors.
Trump has already imposed tariffs first on imports of solar panels and washing machines, and recently on steel and aluminum, which has increased the risks of countermeasures from certain countries, primarily China.
Caution in the market is also a result of new political problems for President Trump, following a series of resignations and changes in the White House, starting with the resignation of chief economic advisor Gary Cohn about ten days ago to this week’s dismissals of Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster.
