US market today: Stocks retreat after record highs as Donald Trump’s tariff shock hits sentiment, Dow slides 331 points

US stocks retreated from record highs on Friday as President Donald Trump’s aggressive tariff warning against Canada reignited investor concerns over global trade frictions. The S&P 500 slipped 0.3% by midday, a day after hitting a fresh all-time high, and looked set to record its first weekly loss in three weeks.The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 331 points, or 0.7%, while the Nasdaq composite edged 0.1% lower. Treasury yields also climbed, with the 10-year yield rising to 4.41% from 4.34%, AP reported.The sharp pullback followed Trump’s announcement of a 35% tariff on Canadian goods, formalised through a letter to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney. The move intensified tensions with one of the US’s closest trade partners and added fresh uncertainty to Wall Street’s outlook.The White House has now extended the deadline for new trade agreements to August 1. Only two deals — with the UK and Vietnam — have been finalised since April, despite threats of steep tariffs. Trump also floated a 200% levy on imported pharmaceuticals this week and imposed a 50% tariff on copper, mirroring rates on steel and aluminium.Despite a relatively muted market reaction, some analysts remain cautious. “Markets appear to believe that Trump will again back down,” said Paul Ashworth, chief North America economist at Capital Economics. “We are not so sure.”Investors are also turning their attention to the upcoming earnings season. Levi Strauss shares surged 9.2% after the apparel company beat estimates and raised its full-year guidance, even as it flagged higher costs from tariffs. PriceSmart rose 4.6% after strong Q3 results and plans to expand into Chile.The earnings calendar picks up next week, with major banks such as JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo and Citigroup set to report on Tuesday. According to FactSet, S&P 500 earnings are expected to grow 5% in Q2 — the slowest pace since Q4 of 2023.Financials, healthcare and communication services weighed on the broader market Friday. Visa fell 2.4%, Gilead Sciences slid 3.7%, and Meta was down 1%. Nvidia bucked the trend, rising 1.2% as it continued its momentum following its $4 trillion valuation.Airline stocks, which rallied Thursday after Delta’s upbeat results, reversed course. Delta fell 1.9%, while United and American Airlines each dropped 4.2%.T-Mobile shed 0.7% after the Justice Department cleared its $4.4 billion acquisition of U.S. Cellular. The latter’s shares rose 3.2% following the antitrust green light.In a notable defence-sector move, Red Cat Holdings rallied 19.8% after US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered an expansion in drone production and deployment.Globally, European indices were broadly lower, while Asian markets closed mixed. Bitcoin briefly hit a new record above $118,000 before retreating to $116,683, buoyed by bullish risk sentiment and ahead of US Congress’ Crypto Week starting July 14.