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Global stock markets have gone into free fall after China announced tariffs of 34 per cent on US goods this morning.
Countries around the world have started announcing their responses to the tariffs imposed by Donald Trump earlier this week.
The import taxes appear to have sparked a full-on global trade war, with retaliatory measures being planned by global economies.
City traders rapidly selling off stocks and shares as they fear the impact of the fallout.
Investment bank JP Morgan has said it now sees a 60 per cent chance of the global economy entering recession by year end, up from 40 per cent previously.
Meanwhile, David Bahnsen, chief investment officer at The Bahnsen Group, warned: “If the current slate of tariffs holds, a Q2 or Q3 recession is very possible, as is a bear market.
“The question is, does President Trump seek some sort of off-ramp for these policies if and when we see a bear market in the stock market.”
FOLLOW BELOW FOR LIVE UPDATES THROUGHOUT THE DAY…
China files complaint with trade body after US ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs
Xi Jinping
GETTY
China said it had opened a formal complaint against the new US. tariffs with the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
It said that saying the measures violate WTO rules and requesting consultations.
“China has filed the WTO complaint with respect to the United States’ measures,” the Permanent Mission of China to the World Trade Organization said in a statement.
British gas prices plummet to lowest in over six months
British and Dutch gas prices have plunged to their lowest in over six months in line with sharp declines in oil and stock markets.
It comes after China announced retaliatory tariffs on US goods of 34 per cent, sparking global recession fears.
The British front-month contract TRGBNBPMc1 was down 8.26 pence at 87.51 pence per therm.
The Dutch front-month contract TRNLTTFMc1 was down 3.62 euros, or 9 per cent at 35.86 euros per megawatt hour (MWh) or $11.63/mmBtu, by 1158 GMT, LSEG data showed.
Prices were already down in the morning but the fall accelerated after China announced additional tariffs.
UK-US trade deal talks ‘on-going’ as Britain refuses to retaliate to tariffs
Rachel Reeves said the UK was ‘determined to get the best deal we can’ with the US
PA
Chancellor Rachel Reeves has said that the UK Government is “determined to get the best deal we can” with the US in order to help protect Britain from the tariffs imposed by America.
It is thought a UK-US trade deal was nearly signed by the White House and Downing Street last week, before Donald Trump decided not to put pen-to-paper.
No10 has refused so far to retaliate to the 10 per cent tariffs imposed by Washington and is instead focused on securing a trade deal.
“Well, of course, we don’t want to see tariffs on UK exports, and we’re working hard as a government in discussion with our counterparts in the US to represent the British national interest and support British jobs and British industry,” the Chancellor said on Friday.
“Those conversations are ongoing at the moment, but we’re determined to get the best deal we can for our country.”
She would not give a timeframe for when she expected the discussions to bear fruit.
“I’m not going to give a running commentary on those discussions. They’ve been ongoing since our Prime Minister Keir Starmer had a successful visit to the White House to meet President Trump just a few weeks ago.
“Those conversations are ongoing. We want to do everything in our power, and we’ll continue to do everything in our power to get the best possible deal for British industry, working closely with them to protect prosperity and jobs here in the UK.”
Wall Street fear gauge hits highest level since August last year
The CBOE Volatility Index, which is used to gauge the level of fear among Wall Street traders, has risen to its highest level since August 2024.
Measuring future expectations of volatility on S&P 500 stock, it has risen since points to far today to 39.60.
Oil prices plunge to lowest level since 2021
Oil prices have hit their lowest prices in more than four years.
Brent North Sea crude, which is often used as a benchmark for international prices, dropped by more than 6 per cent to below $66 per barrel.
It marks its lowest price since 2021.
It comes after eight OPEC+ countries agreed yesterday to increase oil production by 411,000 barrels per day in May.
OPEC had previously planned to produce 135,000 barrels a day next month.
Nasdaq 100 futures fall 20 per cent from all time high
Nasdaq 100 future market dips after China’s announcement
The Nasdaq 100 futures have dropped by 3 per cent due to the significant exposure many tech companies have in China.
The index has fallen 20 per cent from its all-time highs.
Ftse 100 see immediate drop following Beijing statement
The Ftse100 has dropped significantly throughout today
The Ftse 100 has been tumbling ever since trading began at 8.30am this morning.
However, the announcement from China that it would respond to the White House’s tariffs with retaliatory measures of its own led to an immediate significant drop.
The UK’s best-known stock market index dropped by about 4 per cent shortly after the announcement, losing around 150 points in the space of an hour and hitting the lowest level since December.
European indexes were also suffering steep falls with Germany’s Dax tumbling around 4.5 per cent and the Cac 40 down 4 per cent.
China confirms tariff retaliation to Donald Trump
China has confirmed it will impose additional tariffs of 34 per cent on all U.S. goods from April 10.
Beijing’s Commerce Ministry said in a statement: “The purpose of the Chinese government’s implementation of export controls on relevant items in accordance with the law is to better safeguard national security and interests, and to fulfil international obligations such as non-proliferation.”
It also added 11 entities to the “unreliable entity” list, which allows Beijing to take punitive actions against foreign entities.