On a tumultuous morning on Wall Street, a single false tweet sent major stock indexes into brief chaos, illustrating the profound impact social media postings can exert on markets. The incident started when Walter Bloomberg, a prominent news aggregator account on X (formerly known as Twitter), incorrectly reported that President Trump was considering a 90-day pause on a controversial tariff proposal affecting multiple countries (excluding China). The report swiftly generated dramatic swings across indexes such as the Dow Jones, which abruptly rose and then sharply fell as it became apparent the tweet was inaccurate.
The Walter Bloomberg account, despite its name, is not associated with Bloomberg News or any similar media organization. Instead, it has gained its reputation among traders as a quick source that directly relays headlines from the Bloomberg Terminal—an exclusive subscription service for financial professionals offering real-time market insights and breaking news alerts. Accounts like Walter Bloomberg, which repost Terminal alerts verbatim, have become popular among both market insiders and outsiders for their speed and simplicity.
This particular misinformation originated from a chain of reporting errors across prominent media players. CNBC initially aired an unconfirmed news banner indicating that Kevin Hassett, then President Trump’s Director of the National Economic Council, had indicated a potential pause on the tariffs. Reuters quickly picked up CNBC’s headline, repeating the incorrect statement. Walter Bloomberg, highlighting its Terminal source as Reuters, amplified the headline to a broader social media audience, transforming what may have otherwise been a passing error into a market-shaking event.
Rapidly responding, the White House vehemently denied Hassett ever made such claims. A White House-affiliated rapid response team on X publicly refuted the false information, posting a clarifying video clip from Fox News—the original source of confusion. In the clip, Hassett had been asked if the administration would consider a 90-day postponement following a proposal made by billionaire investor Bill Ackman. Hassett cautiously deflected, offering no concrete indication that such a pause was under consideration. Rather, he emphasized that any decision would be solely President Trump’s, encouraging commentators to restrain their rhetoric.
When asked why he shared the misleading headline, the Walter Bloomberg account pointed to Reuters’ hastily published article. Reuters, subsequently questioned by the media, stated that its source had indeed been CNBC’s initial broadcast, acknowledging the error and issuing a retraction. CNBC itself released a short statement admitting the error, attributing it to an unverified piece of information shown briefly on air, and noted that its reporters had promptly corrected the mistake.
Though the markets may have initially reacted due to CNBC’s original broadcast on the costly Bloomberg Terminal rather than solely from Walter Bloomberg’s X account posting, the widespread dissemination of the erroneous headline underscored the speed and sensitivity with which global financial markets react to news—verified or otherwise.
This incident clearly highlighted how swiftly misinformation, amplified by social media, can disrupt financial systems, testing public trust and the credibility of even established outlets under the intense pressure of breaking news reporting.
