1rd LD Writethru: Dow plunges over 600 points on trade concerns

NEW YORK, April 6 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks traded sharply lower on Friday, with the Dow tumbling over 600 points in the afternoon trading, as escalating trade tensions between China and the United States weighed on the market.

U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday said he has asked the U.S. Trade Representative to consider slapping 100 billion U.S. dollars of additional tariffs on China, ratcheting up trade tensions and plunging economic growth into uncertainty.

China will fight "at any cost" and take "comprehensive countermeasures" if the United States continues its unilateral, protectionist practices, a spokesperson with the Chinese Ministry of Commerce said Friday.

The moves came after both sides earlier this week unveiled a list of products worth 50 billion U.S. dollars imported from the other side that will be subject to higher tariffs.

The disappointing nonfarm jobs report also dented investor sentiment. U.S. total nonfarm payroll employment edged up by 103,000 in March, way below market consensus of an increase of 193,000 jobs, the U.S. Labor Department said on Friday. The unemployment rate was unchanged at 4.1 percent in March.

"Given the Fed's fear of the Phillip's curve, March's modest employment growth is likely to be hailed as good news among the denizens of the Eccles building after February's outsized gain. Yields are down about 3bp along the entire curve, suggesting the traders are considering the possibility of both a slower pace of tightening and a lower cycle high for fed funds," said Chris Low, chief economist at FTN Financial. Enditem