On Monday, April 21, U.S. markets closed lower as President Trump intensified his criticism of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, raising fresh concerns over the central bank’s independence. Tech stocks led the sell-off, pulling all major indexes into negative territory. Ongoing trade tensions with China weighed on investor sentiment while anticipation built around upcoming corporate earnings reports.

All 11 sectors in the S&P 500 ended the day in the red, with energy, consumer discretionary, and information technology stocks posting the largest losses.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 2.48% to 38,170.41, the S&P 500 declined 2.36% to 5,158.20, and the Nasdaq Composite fell 2.55% to 15,870.90.

Related: Speculators Ramp Up Bets On Who Will Succeed Fed Chair Powell As Trump’s Pressure Campaign Intensifies

Asia Markets Today

Eurozone at 05:45 AM ET

• The European STOXX 50 was down 0.25%.
• Germany’s DAX declined 0.19%.
• France’s CAC 40 fell 0.28%.
• U.K.’s FTSE 100 index traded higher by 0.38%.

Commodities at 05:45 AM ET

U.S. Futures at 05:45 AM ET

Dow futures were up 0.87%, S&P 500 futures gained 0.98% and Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.99%.

Forex at 05:45 AM ET

• The U.S. Dollar Index slipped 0.01% to 98.34, USD/JPY was down 0.35% to 140.35, and USD/AUD gained 0.15% to 1.5608.
• The dollar fell to new lows Tuesday as Trump’s criticism of Fed Chair Powell sparked concerns over central bank independence and weakened confidence in the currency.

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