Wall Street Sinks, Dollar Slides As Trump Ramps Up Fed Attacks: What's Driving Markets Monday?

Stocks in the U.S. were trading sharply lower by midday Monday, while gold and Bitcoin BTC/USD surged in tandem, as a renewed political storm surrounding Federal Reserve independence shook confidence in the U.S. dollar and triggered a broad-based risk-off mood on U.S. assets.

The market opened the post-Easter trading week with deep losses, after President Donald Trump took to Truth Social demanding immediate rate cuts and blasting Fed Chair Jerome Powell as "Mr. Too Late," accusing him of past political bias and inflation misjudgment.

Trump wrote that there's "virtually no inflation" and warned of an economic slowdown unless Powell acts "NOW."

The latest barrage reignited fears that central bank independence may be under direct threat, just days after reports emerged that the Trump administration is weighing Powell's removal ahead of his scheduled 2026 term expiration.

The U.S. Dollar Index (DXY) fell as much as 1%, marking its lowest level since early 2022, as the greenback weakened against a basket of major currencies including the Japanese yen, euro and Swiss franc.

The selloff has intensified speculation that foreign investors may accelerate the repatriation of capital from U.S. assets amid mounting political and monetary instability.

The S&P 500 dropped 2.8% by midday, with the Nasdaq 100 falling 3%, led lower by steep losses in megacap tech and financials. Every major sector was in the red, with 490 of the 500 S&P 500 stocks trading lower.

In another break from historical norms, U.S. Treasury yields climbed even as equities tanked and volatility spiked. The 30-year yield rose 7 basis points to 4.87%, signaling investor selling of government debt. The CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) jumped 15%.

Gold-linked equities were the few bright spots in an otherwise brutal session. Gold prices – as tracked by the SPDR Gold Trust GLD – surged 2.6% to $3,410 per ounce, pushing the year-to-date gain to nearly 30%—on track for the metal's best annual performance since 2007.

The move extends gold's stunning 2-month rally, now nearing 20%, amid persistent demand for safe-haven assets.

Bitcoin BTC/USD gained 3.5% to trade at $88,274, echoing gold's momentum as investors seek alternatives to fiat currencies.

Monday’s Performance In Major US Indices, ETFs

According to Benzinga Pro data:

• The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust SPY fell 2.8% up to $511.49.
• The SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average DIA fell 2.7% to $380.65.
• The tech-heavy Invesco QQQ Trust Series QQQ tumbled 3% to $430.76.
• The iShares Russell 2000 ETF IWM fell 2.3% to $182.28.
• The Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund XLP outperformed, yet falling 1.4%; the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund XLY lagged, down 3.5%.

S&P 500’s Top Performers On Monday

S&P 500’s Worst Performers On Monday

Read now:

• If You Had Bet On Gold After The 1971 Nixon Shock, You’d Have Beaten The S&P 500 — Unless You Did This One Thing

Photo: FOTOGRIN/Shutterstock