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US close: Stocks sinks as Trump's Greenland tariff threats rattle markets

Tue 20 January 2026 21:52 | A A A

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(Sharecast News) - Major indices were firmly in the red at the close on Tuesday as Donald Trump ramped up his rhetoric on Greenland, threatening to slap new tariffs on countries opposing the sale of the Danish territory.

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 1.76% at 48,488.59, while the S&P 500 shed 2.06% to 6,796.86 and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 2.39% weaker at 22,954.32.

The Dow closed 870.74 points lower on Tuesday, extending losses recored in the previous session as investors refrained from taking on too much risk ahead of the Martin Luther King Jr Day break.

Over the weekend, Trump threatened to slap escalating tariffs on imports from eight NATO member states "until such time as a Deal is reached for the Complete and Total purchase of Greenland". The levies will begin at 10% on 1 February and rise to 25% on 1 June.

Trump also threatened to impose 200% tariffs on French wine and champagne, following reports that Emmanuel Macron would not join his proposed Board of Peace for Gaza. He separately criticised the UK over its plan to transfer sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, despite previously supporting the agreement, calling the move an "act of great stupidity" and arguing it was "another in a very long line of National Security reasons why Greenland has to be acquired".

European leaders have condemned Trump's latest tariff threats as "unacceptable" and were said to be considering retaliatory measures, with France reportedly urging the EU to deploy its AntiCoercion Instrument. Trump, who was scheduled to address the World Economic Forum in Davos on Wednesday, has agreed to meet European leaders at the event in order to discuss his Greenland ambitions.

The White House's tariffs also continued to fate legal scrutiny, with the US Supreme Court expected to rule as early as next week on whether the measures, imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, should be struck down. Treasury secretary Scott Bessent said he believes itto be "very unlikely that the Supreme Court will overrule a president's signature economic policy".

Elsewhere, ongoing civil unrest in Iran continued to add to global unease, with an Iranian official reporting on Sunday that at least 5,000 people have been killed in nationwide protests that began on 28 December over economic hardship and have since escalated into calls for an end to clerical rule.

In the corporate space, worker safety and consumer goods firm 3M beat fourth-quarter revenues estimates and pointed to further growth on the horizon, while construction outfit DR Horton quarterly earnings came in ahead of estimates.

Elsewhere, streaming giant Netflix traded lower in after hours action after issuing lower-than-expected earnings guidance, despite positing solid quarterly earnings growth, and United Airlines posted mixed quarterly numbers, but forecast a record year ahead.

On the macro front, US private employers added an average of 8,000 jobs per week in the four weeks ended 27 December, according to ADP, down from an average gain of 11,250 in the previous period.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com

Dow Jones - Risers

Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $338.43 2.24%

Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $71.75 1.86%

Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $147.00 1.71%

Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $109.45 0.57%

Boeing Co. (BA) $249.00 0.53%

Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $39.08 0.44%

Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $331.00 0.18%

Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $269.61 0.07%

Walmart Inc. (WMT) $113.56 0.00%

Intel Corp. (INTC) $49.14 0.00%

Dow Jones - Fallers

3M Co. (MMM) $156.12 -6.96%

International Business Machines Corporation (CDI) (IBM) $291.35 -4.68%

Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $26.58 -3.59%

American Express Co. (AXP) $352.19 -3.45%

JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $302.74 -3.11%

Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $220.07 -3.10%

Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $629.00 -2.77%

Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $73.35 -2.45%

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $943.37 -1.94%

McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $302.84 -1.49%

S&P 500 - Risers

Albemarle Corp. (ALB) $172.54 5.83%

Constellation Brands Inc. Class A (STZ) $163.64 4.47%

Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $147.73 4.29%

Newmont Corporation (NEM) $118.94 4.22%

Monster Beverage Corp (MNST) $81.47 4.22%

Boston Scientific Corp. (BSX) $91.20 3.55%

Brown Forman Corp. Class B (BF.B) $27.19 2.99%

Coty Inc. Class A (COTY) $3.14 2.95%

Mosaic Company (MOS) $27.03 2.58%

Freeport-McMoRan Inc (FCX) $60.07 2.32%

S&P 500 - Fallers

NetApp Inc. (NTAP) $94.11 -9.37%

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd (NCLH) $20.37 -7.45%

Bath & Body Works, Inc. (BBWI) $21.65 -6.96%

3M Co. (MMM) $156.12 -6.96%

Oracle Corp. (ORCL) $179.92 -5.85%

Celanese Corp. (CE) $44.23 -5.77%

Broadcom Inc. (AVGO) $332.60 -5.43%

KLA-Tencor Corp. (KLAC) $1,486.18 -5.21%

CenturyLink Inc. (LUMN) $8.01 -5.21%

Invesco Ltd. (IVZ) $27.91 -5.20%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Qvc Group Inc Series A (QVCGA) $10.34 7.93%

Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $147.73 4.29%

Monster Beverage Corp (MNST) $81.47 4.22%

Biomarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (BMRN) $56.35 3.22%

Mondelez International Inc. (MDLZ) $57.99 1.31%

Comcast Corp. (CMCSA) $28.16 1.22%

Starbucks Corp. (SBUX) $93.66 0.72%

Western Digital Corp. (WDC) $222.97 0.66%

Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $365.00 0.62%

Biogen Inc (BIIB) $165.36 0.57%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Broadcom Inc. (AVGO) $332.60 -5.43%

KLA-Tencor Corp. (KLAC) $1,486.18 -5.21%

Expedia Group Inc. (EXPE) $272.15 -4.55%

Autodesk Inc. (ADSK) $253.87 -4.45%

Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $178.07 -4.38%

Idexx Laboratories Inc. (IDXX) $684.48 -4.32%

Tesla Inc (TSLA) $419.25 -4.17%

American Airlines Group (AAL) $14.79 -3.77%

Marriott International - Class A (MAR) $313.84 -3.69%

Gen Digital Inc. (GEN) $25.14 -3.68%

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