Tech stocks whipsaw in volatile trading session as Trump stands by tariffs

Technology stocks teetered in volatile trading Monday as President Donald Trump stood by his sweeping global tariff plans following last week’s devastating sell-off.

Apple, Microsoft and Tesla ended the day with declines, with Apple tumbling almost 4%. Alphabet, Amazon, Meta and Nvidia all posted gains. Stocks temporarily jumped on speculation of a possibly delay in the tariffs, but the White House later dismissed talk of a pause.

The technology sector is coming off a brutal week. The Magnificent Seven stocks collectively shed more than $1.8 trillion in market value during a two-day market sell-off, while the Nasdaq Composite recorded its worst week since the onslaught of the Covid-19 pandemic and entered a bear market.

Trump held firm on his aggressive global tariffs plans over the weekend, with an initial unilateral 10% tariff going into effect Saturday. Wall Street hoped for progress on negotiations between the administration and other countries or news of a possible delay in reciprocal tariffs slated for April 9.

The plan has already received widespread backlash in corporate America. JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon said Monday that the new levies will hike prices on domestic and imported goods and pressure the slowing U.S. economy. Many car companies have already announced a pause in shipments, price hikes and other measures. Trade groups have also warned of higher prices at grocery stores and hikes on electronics such as personal computers.

“I don’t want anything to go down, but sometimes you have to take medicine to fix something,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday night, downplaying the recent market meltdown.

Other technology stocks looked to build on last week’s pain. Oracle moved about 1% lower. Palantir Technologies initially slid almost 11% but was up 5% by the end of Monday’s trading session.

Some semiconductor stocks also struggled as investors fretted over potential demand destruction stemming from the tariffs. Advanced Micro Devices and Intel fell 2.5% and 1.4%, respectively.