Investing.com - The U.S. government is preparing to investigate whether Google (NASDAQ:GOOGL), Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN), Facebook (NASDAQ:FB), and Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) abuse their massive market power, setting up what could be an unprecedented, wide-ranging probe of some of the world's largest technology companies.
The Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Justice, which enforce antitrust laws in the United States, have reportedly divided oversight over the four companies, with Amazon and Facebook under the watch of the FTC, and Google and Apple under the Justice Department.
U.S. President Donald Trump has previously called for closer scrutiny of social media and search companies, accusing them of suppressing conservative voices online.
Trump has also repeatedly criticized Amazon for taking advantage of the U.S. Postal Service, while frequently taking aim at Amazon's Chief Executive Jeff Bezos, who privately owns the Washington Post, a newspaper which often criticizes Trump.
The news dragged down tech shares on Monday, with the Nasdaq plunging 1.6%. The drop took the index more than 10% below its late April high. A 10% decline from a peak is a common definition of a correction.
Meanwhile, the S&P 500 is off 7.1% from its April peak, while the Dow is off 7.9% from its 52-week high reached last fall.
Adding to the downbeat mood, hostile rhetoric between the U.S. and China continued as Washington accused Chinese negotiators of backpedaling on important elements of a trade deal that had been largely agreed by both sides.
In addition, markets were also wary about the latest threat from Trump to raise tariffs on goods from Mexico to try to force the Mexican government to stop illegal immigration.
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-- Reuters contributed to this report