Stocks Just Had One of Their Worst Weeks of This Century—Here Are the Grim Details

Stocks tumbled on Friday, adding to the previous day’s massive losses and capping off one of the worst weeks on Wall Street since the turn of the century. 

Market participants started the week cautiously optimistic that the reciprocal tariffs that were slated to be announced Wednesday would give businesses and investors some much-needed clarity on U.S. trade policy. But investors were caught off guard by the sheer size and scope of the taxes, which are expected to lift the U.S. effective tariff rate to its highest level in more than a century. Economists warn tariffs of that magnitude could slash economic growth and reignite inflation. 

This week’s market sell-off was one of the most punishing in recent memory. Here are some data points that put this very bad week in context: 

• The S&P 500 fell 10.5% across Thursday and Friday, the index’s worst 2-day stretch since March 2020 and its third-worst since the turn of the century. The index’s 9.1% loss this week ranks as the seventh-worst week in the last 25 years.
• The Dow had its sixth-worst week of the 21st century; it fell 7.9% over the week and 9.3% in the last two days.
• The Dow shed 2,231 points on Friday, its third-largest one-day point decline on record. 
• The Nasdaq Composite has dropped 11.4% since Trump’s tariff announcement, also its worst 2-day stretch since March 2020. 
• Shares of Apple (AAPL), the world’s most valuable company, have lost 15.9% of their value since Wednesday’s close, their worst 2-day stretch since September 2008. The rout wiped more than half a trillion dollars off the iPhone maker’s market capitalization. 
• 31 companies in the S&P 500 lost more than 20% this week; 247 companies, or nearly half the index, fell 10% or more. 
• Just 21 stocks in the benchmark index—mostly healthcare companies and utilities—finished the week higher; on Friday, only 14 stocks rose. 
• Nike (NKE) rose 3% Friday, making it the only stock in the blue-chip Dow index to close in the green. Still, shares finished the week 10% lower. 
• Even companies with little to no direct tariff exposure were hammered. Palantir (PLTR), the software company that derives most of its revenue from the federal government, tumbled 14% this week. DoorDash (DASH) and Netflix (NFLX), despite not making or selling any physical products subject to tariffs, dropped about 11% and 8%, respectively.