April 21 - U.S. stocks slumped on Monday as President Donald Trump ramped up his attacks on Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 880 points, or 2.3%, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite lost 2.3% and 2.6%, respectively.
Tesla (TSLA, Financial) and Nvidia (NVDA, Financial) led declines among the tech giants, losing 7% and 5%, respectively. Amazon (AMZN) dropped 4%, while Meta Platforms (META, Financial) and Caterpillar (CAT, Financial) fell 3%.
Trump criticized Powell in a post on Truth Social, calling him “Mr. Too Late” and demanding an immediate interest rate cut. This marks an escalation in his ongoing campaign against the Fed. Last week, Trump suggested Powell's potential "termination" was being considered by his team.
The stock losses deepened following Trump's comments, and the U.S. dollar hit a three-year low. Gold soared to a record high above $3,400 per ounce as investors sought safer assets.
Analysts linked the market downturn to Trump's trade war and concerns over rising inflation, with fears that Powell's policy stance could face further political pressure.
