Global stocks have fallen sharply and the US dollar hit a six-month low after Donald Trump unveiled sweeping tariffs against America’s global trade partners in a move that is expected to upend supply chains and cause economic turmoil.
European markets opened lower on Thursday after a sharp selloff across Asia and US futures signalled similar falls when Wall Street opens.
In London, the FTSE 100 fell 1.3%, Germany’s Dax was down 1.6% and France’s CAC was off 1.8%.
It followed a major sell-off in Asia where trading partners were hit with some of the highest tariff rises above the baseline 10% applied to imports from all countries selling goods to the US.
Overnight, Japan’s Nikkei and Topix fell 3.3% and 3.5%, respectively after the US president applied a 24% tariff on the country. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was down 1.9%, while the stock market in Vietnam – which was hit with 50% tariffs – tumbled 6.7%.
US futures also suffered, with the Dow futures pointing at losses of 2.1% and S&P 500 futures falling about 3%.
Futures for the tech-focused Nasdaq were the hardest hit of the three main markets, down 3.5%, with constituents such as Apple – which still has large exposure to China – plunging 7%. Nike took a similar dive of 7.3%, the AI chip maker Nvidia dropped 5.6% and Tesla tanked more than 8%.
The dollar was down 1.1% against a basket of foreign currencies, including the pound, which was up more than a cent or 0.9% at just above $1.31.
Adam Hetts, a portfolio manager at Janus Henderson Investors, said markets were unlikely to calm down anytime soon.
“Eye-watering tariffs on a country-by-country basis scream ‘negotiation tactic’, which will keep markets on edge for the foreseeable future. Fortunately, this means there’s substantial room for lower tariffs from here, albeit with a 10% baseline in place,” Hetts said.
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“We’ve seen the administration have a surprisingly high tolerance for market pain, now the big question is how much tolerance it has for true economic pain as negotiations unfold,” he added.
Oil prices also fell, with a barrel of Brent crude down 3.3% at$72.50 amid fears that sweeping tariffs would trigger a global recession, dampening energy demand.
Meanwhile, investors flocked to “safe” assets, such as gold, for which prices reached a record high of $3167.50 overnight.
Tony Sycamore, an IG market analyst, said: “The tariff rates unveiled this morning far exceed baseline expectations, and if they aren’t negotiated down promptly, expectations for a recession in the US will rise dramatically.”
