Tariff Fears and a Jobs Report Send Stocks Lower

The Dow closed down 572 points, a drop of 2.3 percent after President Trump threatened to escalate a confrontation with China over trade.

After Trump ordered his administration to consider slapping taxes on an additional $100 billion in Chinese goods on top of $50 billion in goods previously announced by both Trump and China, China's Commerce Ministry said they would fight "at any cost" with a full slate of counter-measures.

The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq each declined more than 2 percent. Technology shares led losses on Thursday, as investors grapple with the Federal Reserve's policy update from Wednesday, in which the central bank lifted rates by a quarter-point to a range of 1.50% and 1.75%, but signaled that it might be more aggressive in lifting rates in the coming years.

Stocks fell sharply on Friday as worries of a trade war brewing between the US and China grew.

Trump said late Thursday that he was considering tariffs on $100 billion more in Chinese exports, which would triple what the United States is already planning.

The US stock market dropped Friday as renewed fears of a trade conflict between the US and China mounted. Optimism about the world economy has helped many tech companies make huge gains in the past year.

Facebook share were down 1.3 percent. PayPal dipped $1.88, or 2.4 per cent, to $75.07.

Trump said the market turmoil was short-term "pain", but insisted the outcome would leave the U.S.in a better position.

Employers added 103,000 jobs in March, which is weaker than the last few months. -China trade tensions stoked investors worries.

The S&P 500 ended just above its 200-day moving average after trading well below that key support level that is watched by technical analysts.

The yield on the 10-year US Treasury note, which has been steadily climbing as investors' inflation expectations rise, dipped to 2.78 percent after the jobs report. The lower yields mean banks can't make as much money from lending, and that sent bank stocks lower. Apple lost 2 percent and JPMorgan Chase gave up 2.9 percent. Natural gas rose 3 cents to $2.70 per 1,000 cubic feet. Silver edged up 1 cent to $16.36 an ounce. Caterpillar fell 3.5 percent.

The dollar fell to 106.86 yen from 107.12 yen.

Germany's DAX was down 0.5 percent while France's CAC-40 fell 0.3 percent lower. This represents a $0.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.29%.