US stocks closed sharply lower on Friday as renewed trade tensions between Washington and Beijing rattled investors. President Donald Trump threatened a “massive increase” in tariffs on Chinese imports after China introduced new measures targeting US goods.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) tumbled 1.9%, losing more than 870 points, while the S&P 500 (^GSPC)dropped about 2.7%. The Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC), heavily weighted with tech stocks, led the decline with a 3.6%plunge — its worst performance since April.

Trump’s latest comments came in a fiery post on Truth Social, where he criticized China and its leader, Xi Jinping, following a series of retaliatory steps from Beijing. China recently imposed new port fees on American vessels, launched an antitrust investigation into Qualcomm (QCOM), and tightened export controls on key rare earth minerals. It also suspended purchases of US soybeans, further escalating trade tensions.

“Some very strange things are happening in China!” Trump wrote, suggesting he might cancel a planned meeting with Xi later this month, arguing there was “no reason” for it. He added that his administration is considering “a massive increase of tariffs on Chinese products coming into the United States.”

The renewed tariff threats ended an already volatile week on Wall Street, where optimism around AI stocks was offset by mounting concerns over a potential US government shutdown. With Friday’s losses, all major indexes posted a down week, reversing from recent record highs.

The lack of official economic data — delayed by the ongoing government shutdown, now in its tenth day — also added uncertainty to markets. Private reports became the focus, including the University of Michigan’s October consumer sentiment survey, which showed Americans remain pessimistic about the economy amid inflation worries and job insecurity.

Looking ahead, investors are turning their attention to the start of earnings season next week, led by JPMorgan (JPM)and Citigroup (C). Analysts expect weaker results, with tariffs likely weighing on corporate revenues and market confidence.