Stocks dropped lower Monday as investors grew concerned over President Donald Trump increased criticisms of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and the legitimacy of the central bank's independence from the federal government. The Trump administration has failed to show the progress market participants are looking for on trade talks, further dimming positive sentiment and hardening outlooks that a recession is on the horizon.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average sunk over 1,100 points in morning trade, and ultimately lost more than 950 points, while the S&P 500 Index (SPY  -0.17%) and Nasdaq Composite (QQQ  -0.30%) each lost more than 2%, as investors kicked-off the week with a sell-off.

Here's how the market settled on Monday:

S&P 500 Index (SPY  -0.17%): -2.36% or -124.50 points to 5,158.20

Dow Jones Industrial Average (DIA  0.05%): -2.48% or -971.82 points to 38,170.41

Nasdaq Composite Index (QQQ  -0.30%): -2.55% or -415.55 points to 15,870.90

Trump on Monday called Powell as "major loser," in a Monday, adding to his calls for the Fed Chair to either lower interest rates or step down. Powell said last week that the White House's tariffs are inflationary and could lower economic growth, and called for the central bank to hold interest rates at their current range.

"There can be a SLOWING of the economy unless Mr. Too Late, a major loser, lowers interest rates, NOW," Trump wrote in a post on his social media platform Truth Social, adding that "'Preemptive Cuts' in Interest Rates are being called for by many."

Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee said Monday that Trump's hostile comments towards the Fed emphasize the importance of the central bank remaining independent from the White House.

"I've been at the Fed for a little over two years. Before I was ever at the Fed, I would tell you, economists are basically unanimous that Fed independence is critically important," Goolsbee said in an interview with CNBC on Monday. "And to see why, just look at the countries where they don't have Fed independence. Inflation is higher, unemployment is higher, growth is worse."

The U.S. Dollar fell to its lowest level since 2022 on Monday, as global investors continue to pull out of U.S. assets as confidence in the U.S. economy tumbles in response to Trump's tariff policies on major trading partners. The White House has failed to offer material progress on global trade talks in recent days, and the increasing tensions between the U.S. and China signal that a deal between the two superpowers may not be possible in its current state.

The S&P 500 Index is down more than 8% since Trump announced his tariffs at his "Liberation Day," event on April 2. The Dow, meanwhile, has also lost 9% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite has fallen nearly 10%.

On the Earnings Front:

Netflix (NFLX  -0.39%) reported strong first-quarter earnings late last Thursday, benefiting from higher subscription and advertising revenues. This is the first quarterly report since the streaming giant increased its pricing across all of its subscription tiers in January -- its standard plan rose to $17.99 per month, its ad-supported tier increased to $7.99, and its premium plan now costs $24.99.

The company also reiterated its full-year revenue forecast to range between $43.5 billion and $44.5 billion.

"Based on what we are seeing by actually operating the business right now, there's nothing really significant to note," co-CEO Greg Peters told analysts when asks about the potential impacts of Trump's tariffs policies on the company's business during its earnings call.

"We also take some comfort that entertainment historically has been pretty resilient in tougher economic times. Netflix, specifically, also has been generally quite resilient," Peters added. "We haven't seen any major impacts during those tougher times, albeit over a much shorter history."

In the News:

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on Monday sued Uber Technologies (UBER  0.01%), claiming that the ride-hailing and delivery company employed deceptive billing and cancellation practices under its Uber One subscription service. The agency charged Uber with violating the FTC Act and the Restore Online Shoppers' Confidence Act by failed to provide easy ways for users to cancel their membership -- which costs $9.99 per month or $96 per year -- and charged them fees without their consent.

"Americans are tired of getting signed up for unwanted subscriptions that seem impossible to cancel," FTC Chair Andrew Ferguson said in a statement.

Longtime Tesla (TSLA  -3.42%) bull Wedbush analyst Dan Ives believes that CEO Elon Musk's involvement with the Trump administration has already impacted the electric vehicle maker's brand in a long lasting way, but that damage will continue to grow if Musk continues to be one of the faces of the White House.

"We view this as a for in the road time," Ives wrote in a Sunday note, adding that there will be "permanent brand damage," if Musk leaves the Trump administration, but that damage "will grow" if Musk continues to stay at his post with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

Tesla shares have fallen more than 40% this year as market participants question the leadership of the company as Musk heads many efforts at once; Musk is the leader of his companies Tesla, SpaceX and xAI and is currently the de facto leader of DOGE. Investors were also discouraged by disappointing first-quarter vehicle deliveries reported earlier this month.

"The turnaround vision must start this Tuesday night on the earnings conference call for Musk and Tesla," Ives added.

Looking Ahead:

Market participants will turn their attention towards earnings reports from companies including Verizon Communications (VZ  0.39%), Lockheed Martin (LMT  1.21%), 3M Company (MMM  0.00%), Kimberly-Clark (KMB  1.14%), Halliburton (HAL  -1.65%) and PulteGroup (PHM  -1.13%) on Tuesday.