US stocks fell on Wednesday to wrap up a volatile April after data showed the U.S. economy contracted in the first quarter as President Donald Trump’s flurry of policy moves, especially on trade, weighed on business sentiment.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 351 points, or 0.8%. The S&P 500 were off 1.4%, while Nasdaq Composite lost 2%.
First quarter gross domestic product declined at a 0.3% rate, the Commerce Department said on Wednesday, a rapid reversal from a 2.4% increase in the fourth quarter. Imports surged by 41% in the last quarter, subtracting from GDP, as companies sought to get ahead of Trump’s global trade fight.
A separate report from ADP also signaled an economic slowdown, with private payroll growth slowing in April to just 62,000 during the month. That was well below the Dow Jones consensus estimate from economists of 120,000.
Super Micro Computer tumbled 19% in morning trading after giving preliminary results that fell well short of analysts’ estimates, a sign its comeback plan has been slow to gain traction.
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