Wall Street Has Another Wild Day As Fears Mount Over Trade War
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – It was another wild ride Wednesday on Wall Street.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average saw nearly a 800-point swing amid rising fears that a global trade war between the U.S. and China is on the horizon.
In the end, a monster rally saved the day. The Dow closed up more than 230 points to 24,263, the S&P rose 30 to 2,644, and the NASDAQ finished 100 points higher to close at 7,042.
But as CBS2's Alice Gainer reported, the fears aren't gone yet.
On Tuesday night, the U.S. announced $50 billion worth of tariffs against Chinese-made products. Then, China retaliated.
Overnight, China announced it's putting a 25 percent tariff on 106 U.S.-made products, including soybeans, corn, aircraft and automobiles. The tariffs total $50 billion – the same amount the U.S. is proposing on about 1,300 Chinese products.
The American Soybean Association says this would be devastating to U.S. farmers since they say China is the largest consumer of U.S. soybeans.
"We have to export. We can't eat any more here in the United States. Agriculture survives based on experts, and if we lose that opportunity, it's going to be a deep problem for agriculture and rural communities," Jim Byrum, of the Michigan Agri-Business Association, said.
"We have seen the administration reach out now and say, 'We will take this up on a case-by-case basis as retaliation starts against agriculture. For me, that's not good enough," Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, said.
"This is kind of the beginning battle and hopefully will not escalate into a full blown trade war. That's our hope," said Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue.
National Economic Council Director Larry Kudlow has suggested the proposed tariffs may be a negotiating ploy.
"This is not about trade wars. This is about holding to the laws and the customs of free trade and holding violators to account," he said.
President Donald Trump tweeted Wednesday, "we are not in a trade war with China."
"That war was lost many years ago by the foolish, or incompetent, people who represented the U.S. Now we have a Trade Deficit of $500 Billion a year, with Intellectual Property Theft of another $300 Billion. We cannot let this continue!" he said.
Though they may be at odds most of the time, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said he sides with the president.
"I think we've got to get tough on China. I am much closer to President Trump on China than I was to President Bush, Republican, and President Obama, Democrat, because they let China get away with everything," he said.
China said it has made a request for consultations at the World Trade Organization.
"You see, that is the problem. People do not seem willing to have such consultations to address the issues in a constructive way, in a mutual and beneficial way. So if their choice is to have protectionist moves or unilateral moves, then we have to fight back," Chinese Ambassador to U.S. Cui Tiankai said on CNBC.
Also Wednesday, the Trump administration said it is working with governors to "immediately" deploy the National Guard to help protect the U.S.-Mexico border. This has been done before under previous administrations.
