US open: Stocks lower as Trump demands 'loser' Powell lower interest rates
By Iain Gilbert
Date: Monday 21 Apr 2025
(Sharecast News) - Major indices were in the red early on Monday as traders returned from the Easter long-weekend break to escalating tensions between the White House and the Federal Reserve.
As of 1450 BST, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 1.31% at 38,629.29, while the S&P 500 lost 1.36% to 5,210.62 and the Nasdaq Composite came out the gate 1.72% weaker at 16,006.96.
The Dow opened 512.94 points lower on Monday, extending losses recorded in the previous session on the back of a warning from Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell that the central bank could very well find itself in somewhat of a quandary when it comes to its efforts to both control inflation and support economic growth.
Powell noted that with elevated uncertainty surrounding the impact of Donald Trump's recently implemented tariffs on the US economy, he now expects to see inflation rise and growth slow, undermining both elements of the Fed's dual mandate of ensuring price stability while maximising employment and making it harder for the central bank to justify loosening monetary policy and further.
"We may find ourselves in the challenging scenario in which our dual-mandate goals are in tension," Powell said. "If that were to occur, we would consider how far the economy is from each goal, and the potentially different time horizons over which those respective gaps would be anticipated to close."
Powell said Trump's tariffs were "likely to move us further away" from its goals for "the balance of this year", while Chicago Fed head Austan Goolsbee cautioned that the tariffs will potentially cause the US economy to "fall off" by the summer.
Trump said Powell's termination "can't come fast enough", raising the question of whether he intends to replace Powell when his term expires in 2026 or outright fire him, which the Fed head has repeatedly cautioned would be illegal, leading to fresh questions around the central bank's independence. He then demanded that the "loser" chairman lower interest rates "NOW".
No major data points were scheduled for release on Monday.
Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com
Dow Jones - Risers
Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $275.78 0.85%
International Business Machines Corporation (CDI) (IBM) $239.74 0.39%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $18.91 0.27%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $85.00 0.22%
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $157.75 0.18%
Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $10.82 0.09%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $44.06 0.05%
Walmart Inc. (WMT) $93.24 0.02%
Dowdupont Inc. (DWDP) $0.00 0.00%
Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $72.96 -0.05%
Dow Jones - Fallers
Boeing Co. (BA) $157.52 -2.71%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $286.64 -2.59%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $134.56 -2.40%
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $444.07 -2.21%
Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $241.85 -2.19%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $364.48 -2.17%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $55.00 -1.98%
American Express Co. (AXP) $247.24 -1.62%
Nike Inc. (NKE) $55.04 -1.29%
Visa Inc. (V) $326.86 -0.84%
S&P 500 - Risers
Netflix Inc. (NFLX) $1,008.33 4.98%
Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $78.65 4.17%
Discover Financial Services (DFS) $166.08 4.04%
Fidelity National Information Services Inc. (FIS) $77.05 3.31%
Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR) $0.62 2.80%
Newmont Corporation (NEM) $56.16 1.96%
Kraft Heinz Co. (KHC) $29.58 1.91%
Ipg Photonics Corp. (IPGP) $52.97 1.79%
Capital One Financial Corp. (COF) $165.51 1.68%
Align Technology Inc. (ALGN) $170.29 1.55%
S&P 500 - Fallers
Broadcom Inc. (AVGO) $167.34 -4.29%
Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $98.95 -4.07%
Lam Research Corp. (LRCX) $62.31 -4.03%
Arista Networks Inc. (ANET) $68.60 -3.66%
Alphabet Inc. Class C (GOOG) $150.61 -3.65%
CenturyLink Inc. (LUMN) $3.17 -3.65%
Devon Energy Corp. (DVN) $29.22 -3.60%
Helmerich & Payne Inc. (HP) $19.85 -3.59%
Apache Corp. (APA) $15.31 -3.56%
Alphabet Inc. Class A (GOOGL) $148.49 -3.55%
Nasdaq 100 - Risers
Netflix Inc. (NFLX) $1,008.33 4.98%
Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $78.65 4.17%
Kraft Heinz Co. (KHC) $29.58 1.91%
Mercadolibre Inc. (MELI) $2,115.94 1.87%
Align Technology Inc. (ALGN) $170.29 1.55%
Costco Wholesale Corp. (COST) $990.71 1.48%
Seagate Technology Plc (STX) $74.13 1.30%
Idexx Laboratories Inc. (IDXX) $408.69 1.05%
Mondelez International Inc. (MDLZ) $67.43 1.04%
Biogen Inc (BIIB) $117.10 0.99%
Nasdaq 100 - Fallers
Qvc Group Inc Series A (QVCGA) $0.14 -5.33%
Trip.com Group Limited (TCOM) $54.23 -4.67%
JD.com, Inc. (JD) $33.76 -4.43%
Broadcom Inc. (AVGO) $167.34 -4.29%
Tesla Inc (TSLA) $231.29 -4.23%
Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $98.95 -4.07%
Lam Research Corp. (LRCX) $62.31 -4.03%
Workday, Inc. (WDAY) $217.70 -4.01%
Alphabet Inc. Class C (GOOG) $150.61 -3.65%
Alphabet Inc. Class A (GOOGL) $148.49 -3.55%
Email this article to a friend
or share it with one of these popular networks:
You are here: news
10 Lower Thames St,
London EC3R 6EN