It’s been a black Monday around the world as global equity markets have been melting off the heat from Trump’s tariff announcement last week.
The S&P 500 opened sharply lower on Monday, dropping by 3.17 percent. The Nasdaq also lost 4.00 percent, and the Dow fell 3.17 percent.
Toronto wasn’t left out as its stock index fell 1.01 percent today.
At the opening of the market today, British stocks have also fallen sharply to levels last seen in February 2024.
The FTSE 100 index, the United Kingdom’s best-known stock market index of the 100 most highly capitalised blue-chip stocks, has plunged by 6 percent, taking the index to its lowest level since February 2024.
All of the shares listed in the FTSE 100 index are currently trading at a negative.
Read also: Nigeria stocks join global plunge on Trump’s tariff turmoil
The Hang Seng Index, which tracks and records daily changes in the largest companies in Hong Kong, declined 13.22%. While Mainland China’s CSI 300 fell 7.05 percent.
In Japan, trading in Japanese futures was suspended due to the market hitting circuit breakers, while its benchmark stock index plunged nearly 9 percent to its 17-month low on Monday. This was mostly led by losses in the banking stocks.
Last week, China retaliated with fresh tariffs on U.S. goods after Trump announced the U.S. tariffs, sparking fears of a global trade war that could lead to a recession in the world’s largest economy.
Historically, during times of financial crises, Gold, US treasuries, Japanese Yen, German bonds, and Swiss Francs.
The yen has strengthened around 3 percent against the dollar since April 2, according to data from LSEG. The franc has likewise appreciated more than 3 percent to 0.846 against the U.S. dollar — a fresh six-month high.
Investors have also been taking safety in the U.S. Treasury, as its yields continued to plummet on Friday, with the 10-year Treasury yield earlier falling below 4 percent.