As U.S. stocks suffered their steepest drop of 2019, Big Tech was hit particularly hard. Microsoft, Apple, Amazon, Alphabet and Facebook — the five most valuable U.S. companies — lost a combined $162 billion on Monday, leading the broader market route, which was sparked by concerns of a trade war with China.
President Donald Trump announced last week that, as of Sept. 1, the U.S. would impose a 10% tariff on $300 billion of Chinese imports, signaling an inability for the world’s two largest economies to come to terms on a trade deal. Stocks had their worst weekly performance of the year, and continued plummeting on Monday after China allowed its currency, the yuan, to fall to its lowest level against the dollar in over a decade.
Tech’s big five companies lost $66 billion in market value on Friday, and Monday’s plunge brought the two-day drop to $228 billion. Apple had the biggest percentage decline, falling 5.2%… Apple has more exposure to China than its Big Tech counterparts because it’s so reliant on the country’s manufacturing plants for its top products, most notably the iPhone. Facebook, Google and Amazon have almost no presence in China.
MacDailyNews Take: This too shall pass.