Dow Jones slides after discouraging Apple news

Wall Street is still reeling after Apple's disappointing first quarter (Q1) expectations. The US stock market has fallen by as much as 600 points after the corporation’s news.

The Apple effect

Chief executive officer (CEO), Tim Cook, noted in an interview that sluggish sales in China hurt iPhone purchase amounts overall. After Cook predicted lower-than-expected numbers for Apple’s Q1 report, the company’s stock and Wall Street have both plummeted. Investors worry that the economic slowdown in China and fewer Apple device sales signal the start of a bull market in the US markets. Financial experts like, Jeff Kilberg, chief executive officer (CEO), of KKM Financial noted that Apple’s troubles are part of a possible impending global economic downturn.

‘This piles on to existing anxiety of a slowdown in global growth. Apple can be used as a proxy to China's growth,’ said Kilberg.

How China’s economic woes affect the US

The diminished expectations in Apple’s guidance has also led investors to have doubts about China's economy, the second-largest in the world. Accendo Markets analyst, Mike van Dulken, wrote that the news about Apple compounds anxiety about the global markets.

‘This adds fuel to the fire of concerns about slowing global growth and/or a trade war’, noted van Dulken.

Global and local conflicts drag down markets

In addition to the reduction in Apple device sales, there are global issues like Brexit and the potential US-China trade war also unsettling shareholders. Unresolved domestic issues like the US government shutdown adds to the uncertainty about the US markets. The latest slide is driving investors to fear the worst isn’t over for Wall Street at the start of 2019.