By Chelsey Dulaney and Sam Goldfarb
The White House said President Trump plans to sign an executive order later Thursday laying out sweeping tariffs on a number of countries, as a self-imposed Friday deadline approaches.
The tariff overhang weighed on stocks, offsetting strong earnings late Wednesday from Microsoft and Meta Platforms. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 330 points, or 0.7%.
President Trump also said Thursday that he would give Mexico more time to seal a trade deal and avoid higher tariffs.
After a phone call with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, Trump wrote in a social-media post that he agreed to extend for 90 days the existing tariffs on Mexican goods. He said a 25% fentanyl tariff, a 25% tariff on cars and a 50% tariff on steel, aluminum and copper would remain in place. Most tariffs exclude Mexican exports that comply with USMCA rules.
Trump's trade-deal deadline for many countries to clinch agreements or face tariff hikes expires just after midnight. Mexico was among the most important trading partners that hadn't yet secured a pact.
After a flurry of trade news Wednesday, involving South Korea, India, Brazil, and others, Trump cast doubt on prospects for a deal with Canada. He said its support for a Palestinian state "will make it very hard for us to make a Trade Deal with them."
Meanwhile, shares in Microsoft and Meta rose after the companies posted strong revenue growth, briefly lifting Microsoft's market value above $4 trillion in early trading. An exchange-traded fund tracking the Magnificent Seven rose to a new intraday peak. Two more of the seven, Apple and Amazon, were due to report this afternoon.
Today's highlights:
Stocks ended lower. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite Index gave up early gains, with the broad benchmark slipping 0.4% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq edging down less than 0.1%. The Dow suffered its fourth straight day of declines, with investors growing slightly more nervous about signs of slowing economic growth and an uptick in goods inflation.
Copper prices slid more than 20%, suffering their biggest one-day drop in records going back to the 1960s. President Trump on Wednesday said 50% duties would apply to copper products, but not the raw material.
Treasury yields inched lower, with the 10-year yield closing at 4.36%.
A federal appeals court heard arguments about whether Trump has the authority to impose most of the far-reaching tariffs he has wielded in his second term.
Overseas stocks were mixed. Indexes in South Korea and India slipped. Stocks rose in Japan and most of Europe.
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 31, 2025 16:19 ET (20:19 GMT)
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