Newsday Long Island stock index sees worst single-day loss since COVID pandemic

The reverberations of Thursday's stock market meltdown are being felt locally, with the benchmark stock market gauge of Long Island’s largest companies suffering its biggest daily sell-off since the COVID pandemic.

Analysts said the Wall Street sell-off was precipitated by the extensive round of new tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump. Because many Long Island companies do extensive business with international customers and suppliers, they too are impacted by the new trade policy.

The Newsday Long Island Index, which tracks the 25 largest local companies by stock market value, fell 4.5%, its worst single-day loss since June 11, 2020. The benchmark gauge closed at 419.26, its lowest level since July.

Jericho-based online florist 1-800-Flowers.com was the biggest decliner among local stocks, plunging 15% to $5.27, an 11-year low. The company could be affected by the tariffs because it imports much of its cut flowers from Colombia. In a February interview with Bloomberg Television, CEO Jim McCann said the prospect of tariffs on Colombia created “a scare” but noted he was seeking “more domestic growers” to supply his company.

Also hit hard was Melville-based business software maker Verint Systems, which fell 11% to $15.98, a nine-year low. Verint has customers in more than 180 countries, notably China, which was hit with a new 34% tariff. Last month, Verint said its financial results could be impacted by several factors, including “tariffs or trade wars.”