S&P 500 loses 5% after Trump ups tariffs on China to 145%

Even a better-than-expected report on inflation was not enough to get US stocks to climb further. Picture: PA

US stocks are giving back much of their historic gains from the day before as Wall Street contends with a trade war that has cooled in temperature but is still threatening the economy.

The S&P 500 fell 5% early Thursday.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 1,746 points, and the Nasdaq composite sank 5.8%.

Even a better-than-expected report on inflation was not enough to get US stocks to climb further.

Losses for stocks accelerated after the White House clarified that Chinese imports will be tariffed at 145%, not the 125% rate that US president Donald Trump had earlier written about.