US stocks fall on Cohn exit from White House; Dow -1.1%

New York (AFP) – Wall Street stocks opened sharply lower Wednesday as the departure of a key economic advisor to President Donald Trump sharpened worries about a trade war.

Shortly after the opening bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was at 24,615.17, down 1.1 percent.

The broad-based S&P 500 shed 0.7 percent to 2,707.87, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index fell 0.6 percent to 7,324.58.

Analysts pointed to unease at news that White House economic advisor Gary Cohn would depart the White House in the coming weeks after failing to persuade Trump on free trade issues.