Day Traders Diary

3/3/2025

The major averages reverse course after a big up day to end February last week as President Donald Trump's stance on upcoming tariffs and his position on Ukraine raise economic and geopolitical concerns. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 649 points, or 1.48%. The S&P 500 fell 104 points or 1.76% while the Nasdaq Composite slid 497 points or 2.6%, weighed down by Nvidia.

All three indexes traded higher earlier in the session, with the Dow at one point up nearly 200 points. Stocks took a notable leg down in afternoon trading following Trump's reiteration that 25% levies on imports from Mexico and Canada would go into effect on Tuesday, dashing investors' hopes of a last-minute deal to avert the full tariffs on the two U.S. allies.

The tech sector started the sell off led by Nvidia down 9% on concern of trade tariffs, limiting demand particularly from China going forward. The sell off extended to the rest of the big cap techs, financials, energy and Industrials.

The price of oil is down 2% as OPEC + will increase output in April even as demand and economic growth could wane. Bitcoin rose 9% over the weekend, but then fell 9% today even as President Trump wants to create a crypto reserve. Gold is one of the few bright spots up nearly 2% on a weak US dollar and trade tariff concerns.