US STOCKS-Wall Street tumbles as renewed tariff threat adds to uncertainties

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* Tesla plunges after Musk tweet
* Amazon drops after forecasting possible Q2 loss
* U.S. manufacturing skids to 11-year low in April
* Indexes down: Dow 2.55%, S&P 500 2.81%, Nasdaq 3.20%

(Updates to market close)
By Stephen Culp
NEW YORK, May 1 (Reuters) - Wall Street sold off sharply on
Friday after President Donald Trump revived a threat of new
tariffs against China in response to the COVID-19 pandemic,
which has brought global economies to a grinding halt.
All three major U.S. stock averages closed down well over
2%, and for the week they all lost ground.
May is often marked by sell-offs, and on the month's first
day, with jitters on the rise as some U.S. states begin easing
coronavirus shutdowns, the adage held true.
"Markets had a very strong April as they looked through the
valley of economic weakness to a point when stimulus will
reignite economic growth," said David Carter, chief investment
officer at Lenox Wealth Advisors in New York. "But it could be a
longer and deeper valley than many hoped."
Indeed, stocks had a remarkable run in April, with the S&P
500 and the Dow both posting their strongest monthly percentage
gains in 33 years.
Trump said his administration was crafting retaliatory
measures against China as punishment for the coronavirus
outbreak, once again sparking tariff fears that rattled markets
through much of the last two years. Trump has blamed China for
what he says is "misinformation" when the virus emerged from the
Chinese city of Wuhan and then quickly spread around the
world. "Trump poking China was the last thing markets needed given
so much present economic and financial uncertainty," Carter
added.
A mixed bag of earnings, particularly a disappointing report
from Amazon.com AMZN.O , along with a fresh round of dismal
economic data, also weighed on sentiment.
U.S. manufacturing activity skidded to an 11-year low last
month as lockdowns shuttered factories, according to the
Institute for Supply Management's purchasing managers index.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI fell 622.03 points,
or 2.55%, to 23,723.69, the S&P 500 .SPX lost 81.72 points, or
2.81%, to 2,830.71, and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC dropped
284.60 points, or 3.2%, to 8,604.95.
All 11 sectors of the S&P 500 closed in the red, with energy
companies .SPNY suffering the largest percentage drop.
The corporate reporting season has crossed the midpoint,
with 275 of the companies in the S&P 500 having reported
quarterly results. Of those, 68% have beaten consensus
estimates.
In aggregate, first-quarter S&P 500 earnings are seen having
fallen 12.7% from a year ago, a stark reversal from the 6.3%
annual growth forecast that stood on Jan. 1.
Tesla Inc TSLA.O plunged 10.3% after company Chief
Executive Elon Musk said in a tweet that the electric car
maker's stock price was "too high." Amazon.com AMZN.O shares slid 7.6% after the online
retailer warned pandemic-related expenses could lead to its
first quarterly loss in five years. Apple Inc's AAPL.O quarterly results beat expectations,
but the iPhone maker declined to provide current-quarter
forecasts. Its shares lost 1.6%.
Exxon Mobil XOM.N dropped 7.2% after the company reported
a drop in profit due to a massive $3 billion writedown on
plummeting oil demand and prices. Rival Chevron Corp CVX.O posted a 38% profit increase,
boosted by asset sales, and slashed spending plans. Its shares
dipped 2.8%. Declining issues outnumbered advancing ones on the NYSE by a
5.23-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 4.40-to-1 ratio favored decliners.
The S&P 500 posted no new 52-week highs and two new lows;
the Nasdaq Composite recorded 17 new highs and 12 new lows.
Volume on U.S. exchanges was 10.17 billion shares, compared
with the 12.19 billion average over the last 20 trading days.