Following the most recent revelations of U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff regime, European equities fell precipitously on Monday, intensifying a global market meltdown that began last week.
By 2 p.m. London time, the pan-European Stoxx 600 had down 4.1%, with large losses on all major bourses and across all sectors. After losing 10% earlier in the day, Germany’s DAX index was down 4%.
With a loss of 8.4% last week, the regional Stoxx 600 index had its worst week in five years. Only at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 did the Stoxx 600 perform worse than it did in the previous ten years.
The extent to which goods from important U.S. trade partners would be subject to additional levies shocked investors when Trump unveiled his whole list of so-called reciprocal tariffs.
A worldwide trade war was also feared as a result of the action, with China retaliating by imposing 34% tariffs on American imports and the EU threatening to apply its own sanctions in the event that talks with America break down.
Source (CNBC)
