U.S. stocks closed lower on Wednesday, with all three indexes snapping their three-day winning streak, as investors looked forward to President Donald Trump’s long-promised tariff announcement on auto imports.

How Did The Benchmarks Perform?

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) declined 0.3% or 132.71 points, to close at 42,454.79 points.  

The S&P 500 slid 1.1% or 64.45 points, to finish at 5,712.20 points. Consumer discretionary and tech stocks were the worst performers. However, consumer staples stocks gained big.

The Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR (XLP) gained 1.6%. The Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR (XLY) fell 1.3%, while the Technology Select Sector SPDR (XLK) declined 2.2%. Six of the 11 sectors of the benchmark index ended in negative territory.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq fell 2% or 372.84 points to end at 17,899.01 points. 

The fear-gauge CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) was up 6.88% to 18.33. A total of 15.5 billion shares were traded on Wednesday, lower than the last 20-session average of 16.2 billion.

Trump’s Tariff Plans on Auto Imports Dent Consumer Sentiment

Trade war fears returned to Wall Street on Wednesday after three straight sessions of gains, after the White House said that Trump will finally announce U.S. tariffs on automotive imports. 

Trump was set to announce hefty tariffs on foreign-made vehicles, including auto parts, at a press conference on Wednesday, triggering fresh fears of retaliatory tariffs from its trade partners, which could result in a trade war. 

Shares of American auto giant General Motors Company (GM) fell 3.2% ahead of the announcement, while Stellantis N.V. (STLA) declined 3.6%. General Motors carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

The fresh fears come as Trump is expected to announce a host of additional tariffs next week. Trump said on Tuesday that the tariffs will be more flexible and he may give some countries a break from the reciprocal tariffs. 

Fears of a trade war have been denting investors’ sentiment, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq already having entered correction territory earlier this month. Tech stocks took a beating again on Wednesday, with shares of Tesla, Inc. (TSLA) declining 5.6%. Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (META) fell 2.3%, while Amazon.com, Inc. (AMZN) gave up 2.2%. 

Economic Data

In economic data released on Wednesday, the Commerce Department said that orders for durable goods rose 0.9% month over month in February, beating analysts’ expectations of a decline of 1%.

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