By Ed Ballard and Alexander Osipovich

S&P 500, Nasdaq Fall; Dollar Weakens as Trump Tariffs Loom

President Trump and geopolitics are setting the agenda for markets at the start of the week.

Investors are braced for more last-minute wrangling between the U.S. and its trading partners, with a 25% levy on Canadian and Mexican goods slated to start Tuesday. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said Sunday that President Trump hasn't decided yet whether to go ahead.

U.S. stock indexes fell in midday trading. New data showed U.S. manufacturers' supply costs jumped in February, as Trump's tariff threats raise the specter of higher inflation.

In Europe, defense stocks surged after the region's leaders talked up military spending. European governments are scrambling to put together a Ukraine-Russia peace plan, after Trump's rancorous meeting with Ukraine's president on Friday put the onus on the continent's leaders to back Kyiv.

In recent trading:

U.S. stocks were down modestly, with the technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite declining the most among the three major indexes.

Benchmark Treasury yields fell to about 4.20%. On Friday, yields settled at 4.228%, after their steepest one-month decline in more than a year.

The U.S. dollar weakened against the euro and the U.K. pound.

Bitcoin traded around $90,000, leveling off after a Sunday rally prompted by Trump's comments on a U.S. strategic reserve. Crypto-linked stocks such as Coinbase and MicroStrategy climbed.

European stocks outperformed, helped by defense companies including BAE Systems and Thales, both of which gained more than 14%.

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(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 03, 2025 12:12 ET (17:12 GMT)

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