In afternoon trading on Tuesday, US stocks slowed down following the White House's announcement of its intention to impose a 50% tariff on Chinese goods, increasing the overall tariff rate on Chinese goods to 104%. This new tariff rate will come into effect at 12:01am ET. As a result, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite, which had been increasing, both dropped by approximately 0.2% and 0.4% respectively. Nvidia, on the other hand, saw a 2% rise in the afternoon after a 7% increase earlier in the day. The Dow Jones Industrial Average experienced a minor 0.2% rise, gaining only 70 points, compared to the over 1,300 points it gained earlier in the session.

During a briefing, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt stated that Americans are less dependent on other countries than other countries are on the US, emphasizing President Trump's unwavering stance on tariffs. The market had been showing signs of recovery after a tumultuous session on Monday when the Dow dropped by 350 points and the S&P 500 suffered a significant three-day loss.

Although Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent's positive remarks about bilateral trade talks with Japan initially boosted market confidence, concerns persisted over the potential of a trade war between the US and China. Despite ongoing negotiations, reciprocal tariffs remain scheduled to be imposed. China has also expressed readiness to retaliate if the US continues what it refers to as "blackmail."

Various prominent figures in the financial sector, such as JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon and BlackRock CEO Larry Fink, have raised concerns about the impact of the tariffs proposed by President Trump. Even Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and advisor to Trump, has made subtle criticisms in recent days.