Wall Street Avoids Another ‘Black Monday’ as Dow Jones Drops 349 Points

Fears of a repeat of the 1987 ‘Black Monday’ did not materialize during the first trading session of the week on Wall Street, with American markets managing to avoid catastrophic losses compared to the sell-off on April 3rd and 4th. Initially, all signs pointed towards another disastrous trading session following the two-day sell-off that wiped $9.5 trillion from the markets, with all three major indices diving deep into the red, particularly the Dow Jones, which fell by over 1,100 points at one point. However, news circulated by Reuters indicating that Donald Trump was considering suspending new tariffs for 90 days (excluding China) helped buoy investor sentiment temporarily. Even after the White House denied the report, labeling it as ‘fake news,’ the damage was limited. The Dow Jones closed with the largest loss among the three indices, shedding 349 points or 0.91%, while the S&P 500 lost 0.27% and the Nasdaq managed a slight gain of 0.10%. On the tariff front, the European Union is reportedly preparing retaliatory measures against U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum, planning to impose duties on various American goods starting May 16th and December 1st, including diamonds, dental floss, sausages, dried fruits, and soybeans.