On Friday, the crisis on Wall Street reached a new, more alarming stage, becoming the most serious since COVID-19.
The S&P 500 fell 6% after China announced a major increase in tariffs previously imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump this week.
The move has increased tensions in a trade war that could lead to a recession affecting everyone.
Even a positive US labor market report, usually considered the most important economic event of the month, could not prevent the decline.
The drop capped the S&P 500's worst week since March 2020, when the pandemic battered the economy.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 2,231 points, or 5.5%, and the Nasdaq Composite Index fell 5.8%, down more than 20% from its December record.
There are few winners left in the financial markets from the trade war at this point. Shares in all but 12 of the 500 companies in the S&P 500 fell on Friday.
Crude oil prices fell to their lowest since 2021, while other key economic growth indicators such as copper also fell on concerns that the trade war will weaken the global economy.
China's response to U.S. tariffs has caused losses in international markets to skyrocket. China's Commerce Ministry said it would respond to the 34% U.S. tariffs on Chinese imports with its own 34% tariff on all U.S. goods, starting April 10.
The United States and China are the largest economies in the world.
Markets briefly recouped some of their losses after the release of a U.S. jobs report on Friday morning that showed employers increased hiring last month more than economists had expected.
It's the latest sign that the U.S. labor market remains relatively stable as we enter 2025. But these employment data reflect the past, and the fear gripping financial markets is about the future.
“The world has changed and economic conditions have changed,” said Rick Rieder, chief investment officer for global fixed income at BlackRock.
The big question going forward: Will the trade war lead to a global recession? If it does, stock prices are likely to fall even lower than they are now. The S&P 500 is down 17.4% from its record high set in February.
Mr Trump appears to be keeping his cool. From his private Florida club, Mar-a-
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
