The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped over 500 points after the opening bell on Wednesday (April 4). The nosedive comes after China announced retaliatory tariffs on dozens of U.S. products in retaliation for heavy tariffs on foreign steel and aluminum enacted by President Trump. U.S. automakers were particularly hard hit by the early morning sell-off. Fears of a trade war also sent the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 down.
"I think the market is just concerned about this thing escalating right now," James Paulsen, chief investment strategist at The Leuthold Group, told CNBC's "Squawk Box." "It's not so bad if we have a few tariffs on a few products, but if it escalates worldwide, … then you're really threatening the recovery globally."
The markets rebounded slightly in the opening hour but were still down across the board.
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