Trump's new tariff push leaves Wall Street divided

A barrage of statements from U.S. President Donald Trump on tariffs divided Wall Street on Wednesday, with the timing of the imposition of tariffs on U.S. imports leaving investors confused.

THE S&P 500 closed at the waterline, advancing a modest 0.02 % to 5,956.15 points, while the technological Nasdaq Composite added 0.26% to 19,075.26 points. In a counter-cycle, the Dow Jones industrial lost 0.43 % to 43,433.12 points .

Trump was asked whether he planned to impose 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico on March 4. He announced the levies earlier this month but later agreed to a one-month delay that expires next week. He later said the tariffs would go into effect on April 2.

On Wednesday, Trump admitted that European products will soon be subject to 25% tariffs , which will target the automotive sector among others, but he postponed the details until later. In addition, this morning he ordered his team to study tariffs on copper.

For Steve Sosnick of Interactive Brokers, while the early recovery in stocks was more robust than previous attempts, the latest statements on tariffs "killed sentiment" in the market.

Trump's confusing comments have reignited concerns about the impact of tariffs on global economic growth and inflation.

In the main market movements, Super Micro Computer rose 12.23% after meeting the deadline to file outstanding accounts reports to remain listed on the Nasdaq Composite. On the other hand, technology company AppLovin fell 12.22% after being the target of two "short-seller" reports, causing the shares of the best-performing technology company in 2024 to fall.

Markets will be closely watching tech giant Nvidia's 2024 results, released after Wall Street closes on Wednesday.