CNBC Business News Update - Market Midday: Stocks Lower, Tariffs Loom Tonight, Car Makers Brace For Tariffs 3/3/25

Episode Date: March 3, 2025

From Wall Street to Main Street, the latest on the markets and what it means for your money. Updated regularly on weekdays, featuring CNBC expert analysis and sound from top business newsmakers. Anchored by CNBC's Jessica Ettinger.

I'm Jessica Ehinger CNBC tariff worries swirl on Wall Street as a deadline looms tonight. The Dow plunging 400 points, 1% led lower by shares of Nvidia, which are down almost 8% this afternoon. The S&P 500 index down 62 points, that's 1%. The Nasdaq plunging 312 points, 1.5%. The stock market enters this new month facing some economic jitters and intense policy noise from the White House that has been denting confidence,

according to some investors. I think he's doing things in a manner that is very destabilizing, and he's trying to change the whole ethos of the country. You know, I look at the Statue of Liberty, I think the message of the base is give me a poor message, the earning to be free, you know, and you know, we're rejecting that now and we're taking a different approach. I understand what he's doing.

He's focusing on the deficit, but which has to be focused, but you know, focusing on the deficit is contractionary. Billionaire investor Leon Cooperman on CNBC. Midnight tonight, that's when the US is set to begin imposing 25% tariffs on all imports from Canada and Mexico, plus an additional 10% on goods coming in from China. All countries are planning to retaliate.

Now, car makers are bracing for the Trump tariffs. Almost one out of every four comes from either north or south of the border. Mexico about double the production of Canada. What have the big three done in preparation? I know they all have war rooms. I've talked to people at all of the automakers who have said, look, we're game planning for a number of scenarios.

Most believe you're looking at three, four, five weeks before you really start to see prices rising. And most believe the automakers spread it out across the line of CNBC's Phil LeBeau. Canada supplies the U S with lumber used by home builders, tariffs there mean homes are just going to cost even more. The majority of lumber imports to the U S come from Canada and there is already a 14.5% dumping tax on Canadian lumber. The 25% tariff potentially going into effect tonight would be on top of that.

The NHB's chief economist said builders told him the tariffs could increase builder costs anywhere from $7,500 to $10,000 per home. Appliances come from China and Mexico. You're seeing aluminum and gypsum. That's all your wall board. That comes from Mexico as well. So if you see tariffs on that, you're looking at increased costs for builders

and they're gonna trickle that down to buyers. Of course, you already have home prices for new homes very high right now. CNBC's Diana Olek, independent filmmaker, Neon Executives, celebrating their best picture win from last night for its film, Anura, at the Academy Awards. Domino's Pizza finally launched stuffed crust pizza to compete with rivals.

Tesla shares up 3% today, although the company lost a third of its value last month. Tesla stores were protested across the country over the weekend. Thousands of people carrying signs saying things like stop the Nazi coup. Some of the negativity surrounding the stock has been attributed to anger over Elon Musk's role in trying to cut government spending, as well as investor fears that he's not focusing enough on his companies. Over the weekend, demonstrators protested Musk and his Doge spending cut initiative outside Tesla stores across the country. Nine people were arrested during a protest outside a dealership in New York.

CNBC's Melissa Lee, Jessica Ettinger, CNBC. The Investing Club, we're not about trading, we're about investing. Get invested. Join the club today. Go to cnbc.com slash gymsclub.