US stocks were a mixed bag early Wednesday as Wall Street assessed the prospects for trade war after China struck back with an 84% tariff on US goods.

The benchmark S&P 500 ( ^GSPC ) fell about 0.3%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite ( ^IXIC ) was up 0.4%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ( ^DJI ) slid 0.5% or more than 200 points. All three of the major averages were off their session lows.

Meanwhile, the benchmark 10-year Treasury yield ( ^TNX ) continued a recent surge, moving up near 4.5% before paring those gains. The 10-year has seen its largest three-day jump since 2001.

China retaliated on Wednesday after the Trump administration delivered on its threat to impose whopping 104% duties on its exports to the US. After a delay in responding that markets hoped showed signs of restraint , Beijing said the hike to 84% duties will take effect on Thursday, reports said.

The move marks another escalation in the tensions between the world's two biggest trading powers, which has roiled markets as worries about the fallout for economies worldwide. On Tuesday, China vowed to "fight to the end," a retaliatory stance that the White House described as "a mistake."

Trump's announcement of so-called "reciprocal" tariffs stunned markets last week, imposing massive hikes on Vietnam, Japan, India, and others. They continued to bring chaos to Wall Street on Tuesday in another roller-coaster ride of a session that brought the S&P 500 ( ^GSPC ) closer to a bear market.

Read more: Live updates on Trump tariffs fallout

Investors took in some other signs of optimism, after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he believed "we can end up with some good deals." Japan and South Korea are in line for trade talks.

For his part, Trump weighed in on the volatile market action just after the open on Wednesday, writing on social media that it is a "great time to buy!!!"

"BE COOL! Everything is going to work out well. The USA will be bigger and better than ever before!" he added.

Meanwhile, minutes from the Federal Reserve's March meeting could show how worried policymakers were about stagflation risks from Trump's tariff push. The release due later sets the stage for Thursday's update on the Consumer Price Index, which will signal where inflation was headed before Trump's tariffs went into full force.

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