The US stock market tumbled deeply into the red on Thursday as the White House clarified its plan for a massive 145% tariff on China, escalating a trade war. The Dow, after rising nearly 3,000 points Wednesday, had a volatile day in the red on Thursday. The blue-chip index fell 1,015 points, or 2.5%, pulling back after tumbling as much as 2,100 points midday. The S&P 500 fell 3.46% and the Nasdaq Composite slid 4.31%. The S&P 500 was coming off its best day since 2008, and the Nasdaq on Wednesday posted its second-best daily gains in history. The stock market, fresh off its third-best day in modern history, is sinking back into reality: Although President Donald Trump paused most of his “reciprocal” tariffs, his other massive import taxes have already inflicted significant damage, and the economy won’t easily recover from the fallout. After taking a victory lap Wednesday, the president on Thursday acknowledged some “transition problems” could be expected. “A big day yesterday. There will always be transition difficulty — but in history, it was the biggest day in history, the markets. So we’re very, very happy with the way the country is running. We’re trying to get the world to treat us fairly,” Trump said in the Cabinet Room. The US dollar index, which measures the dollar’s strength against six foreign currencies, tumbled 1.7% Thursday, hitting its lowest level since early October. The dollar has broadly weakened this year, a sign of investors’ concern about the health and stability of the US economy. Gold prices hit a fresh record high above $3,170 a troy ounce on Thursday. The yellow metal is considered a safe haven amid economic and geopolitical turmoil and just posted its best quarter since 1986.

Stocks are volatile after short-lived relief rally

Traders were elated that Trump temporarily rescinded his so-called reciprocal tariffs, which aren’t really reciprocal, for 90 days. Those tariffs placed hefty levies between 11% and 50% on dozens of countries. Stock futures on Thursday had also responded somewhat positively to the European Union’s announcement that it would temporarily pause its retaliatory tariffs on the United States in hopes of a negotiated trade agreement after Trump’s U-turn. Trump and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said more than 70 countries were lining up to negotiate trade deals with the United States to get out from under the tariffs, and the Trump administration wanted to provide time to strike deals. But even after Trump’s about-face, the reality remains stark: Economists said the economic damage is done, and many say there is still an elevated risk of a US and global recession. Stocks are still well below where they were before Trump unveiled his “Liberation Day” tariffs last week, and those large stock market losses, existing tariffs and high degree of uncertainty about American trade policy are enough to sink the economy, they say. Trump’s universal 10% tariff that went into effect Saturday remains in place, as do 25% tariffs on auto imports, 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum and 25% tariffs on some goods from Canada and Mexico. Trump also pledged to go forward with additional tariffs on pharmaceuticals, lumber, semiconductors and copper. Goldman Sachs said Wednesday after Trump’s partial detente that recession chances in the United States were still a coin flip. JPMorgan Wednesday evening said the bank would not alter its recession forecasts, still seeing a 60% chance of a US and global recession even after Trump’s “positive” decision to unwind his “draconian” country-specific tariffs. “My sense here is that the (US) economy is still likely to fall into recession, given the level of simultaneous shocks that it’s absorbed,” Joe Brusuelas, chief economist of consulting firm RSM, told CNN. “All this does is postpone temporarily what will likely be a series of punitive import taxes put on US trade allies.” The CBOE Volatility Index, or Wall Street’s fear gauge, surged 40% Thursday. The VIX briefly traded above 50 points midday — a rare level associated with extreme volatility. New data on Thursday showed that inflation in the US slowed sharply in March. While that is usually welcome news for investors, the focus on Wall Street is firmly on tariffs and the outlook for the economy going forward. “Thursday’s [data] is for March, which is backward looking and doesn’t tell the market much about how the recent tariffs, albeit many of them on pause, are affecting consumer prices,” said Skyler Weinand, chief investment officer at Regan Capital.

China’s not backing down

Meanwhile, Trump isn’t backing off his alarming trade war with China — in fact, it’s getting worse. Goods coming from China to the United States are now subject to at least a 145% tariff, the White House clarified Thursday. The 125% “reciprocal” tariff Trump announced on China on Wednesday comes on top of the 20% tariff that had already been in place. It hadn’t been clear if the tariffs were additive. Stocks immediately dipped lower after news outlets began reporting the clarification around 11 a.m. ET. Also on Thursday, Beijing’s retaliatory 84% tariffs on US imports to China went into effect. China says it remains willing to negotiate with the United States, but a spokesperson for the Chinese Commerce Ministry also reiterated Thursday that China will not back down if Trump chooses to further escalate the trade war. “The door to talks is open, but dialogue must be conducted on the basis of mutual respect and equality,” the spokesperson said. “We hope the US will meet China halfway, and work toward resolving differences through dialogue and consultation.” “If the US chooses confrontation, China will respond in kind. Pressure, threats and blackmail are not the right ways to deal with China,” the spokesperson said.

Signs of stress

Some billionaire investors, who have been pressuring Trump to back off his punishing tariffs, were elated that the president hit pause. “There are better and worse ways of handling our problems with unsustainable debt and imbalances, and President Trump’s decision to step back from a worse way and negotiate how to deal with these imbalances is a much better way,” billionaire investor Ray Dalio said in a post on X late Wednesday, adding: “I hope… he will do the same with the Chinese.” But signs of stress remain in markets beyond just stocks. The bond market, which had been selling off alarmingly fast — the 10-year Treasury yield surged past 4.5% Wednesday from under 4% earlier in the week — has cooled off just a bit. Yields rise when bond prices fall. But the 10-year yield was above 4.3% Thursday. That’s not exactly a vote of confidence. “Bonds are signaling that the pause is significant, yet not much has fundamentally changed,” said ING analysts in a note to investors Thursday. “Markets will not easily forget these episodes with wide market swings.” Oil prices also remained under pressure. US oil fell again Thursday to below $60 a barrel, near where oil was in April 2021. Prices had fallen dramatically below $57 a barrel Wednesday before recovering. Brent crude, the global benchmark, also fell 4% to around $63 a barrel. Still, global markets recovered sharply Thursday. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 index finished more than 9% higher, while South Korea’s Kospi index was up 6.6%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index jumped 2.1%. Taiwan’s Taiex rose 9.3%. In Australia, the ASX 200 closed up 4.5%. European stocks surged after European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen paused retaliatory tariffs and said she welcomes Trump’s move to pause his “reciprocal” tariffs. “It’s an important step towards stabilizing the global economy,” she said Thursday in a statement. “Clear, predictable conditions are essential for trade and supply chains to function.” Europe’s benchmark STOXX 600 index was 3.7% higher Thursday. France’s CAC index was up 3.8% and Germany’s DAX jumped 4.5%, while London’s FTSE 100 index rose 3%.

Asia-Pacific markets fell Friday, after Wall Street resumed sell-off overnight as trade war tensions between the world’s two largest economies fueled risk-off mood. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 2.28%. Japan’s Nikkei 225 lost 5.46%, while the Topix traded 5.05% lower. South Korea’s Kospi fell 1.55% and the small-cap Kosdaq declined 0.11%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index was down 0.8% while China’s CSI 300 dipped 0.13%. U.S. President Donald Trump announced a tariff U-turn Wednesday, dropping the new reciprocal tariff rates on imports from most countries for 90 days. “The extension of time does not alleviate uncertainty,” ANZ analysts wrote in a note. “There is skepticism about the outcome of trade negotiations, and that will continue to weigh on investment and thus the growth outlook.” Additionally, the cumulative tariff rate on China now would be 145%, the White House confirmed to CNBC on Thursday. The figure consists of the new 125% duty on goods, on top of the 20% duty linked to the fentanyl crisis. U.S. stock futures moved higher as investors look to close out a volatile week, punctuated by sharp swings for the major averages. S&P 500 futures added 0.3%, while Nasdaq 100 futures climbed roughly 0.1%. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average ticked higher by 28 points, or nearly 0.1%. Overnight in the U.S., the three major averages closed lower, giving back some of the gains from the historic rally seen in the previous session after President Donald Trump announced a 90-day reprieve on some of his “reciprocal” tariffs. The S&P 500 sold off 3.46% and closed at 5,268.05, while the Nasdaq Composite slid 4.31% to end at 16,387.31. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 1,014.79 points, or 2.5%, settling at 39,593.66.

The unusual surge in long-term Treasury yields has rattled investors in the aftermath of President Trump’s tariff-fueled “Liberation Day” — and the catalysts behind the turmoil could have a ripple effect across the entire financial ecosystem. As of Wednesday’s close, the 10-year yield (^TNX) jumped another 14 basis points to trade around 4.40%, even as Trump announced a 90-day pause on reciprocal tariffs for a swath of countries and also raised tariffs on China. That represents a massive 53 basis point swing from Monday’s low of 3.87% — and the biggest three-day jump since December 2001. Following the latest tariff news, the 30-year yield (^TYX) posted more modest gains but still rose 8 basis points after it logged its biggest move to the upside since March 2020 earlier in the week. After the market close, the 30-year yield traded at 4.79%. Yields and bonds are inversely correlated, meaning higher yields equal falling bond prices. “The Stock and Bond Vigilantes signal that the Trump administration may be playing with liquid nitro,” Ed Yardeni, president of Yardeni Research, said in a research note published on Tuesday. “Something may be about to blow up in the capital markets as a result of the stress created by the administration’s trade war. If so, then the S&P 500 will fall into a bear market for sure.” On Wednesday, President Trump admitted he’s had his eye on the recent surge in yields, telling reporters on the White House Lawn, “The bond market is very tricky. I was watching it. But if you look at it now, it’s beautiful.” “Last night people were getting a little queasy,” he added. “The big move wasn’t what I did today. The big move was what I did on Liberation Day.” Notably, the recent surge has landed the 10-year yield back to where it was at the end of February.

‘Something has broken’

The bond market serves as a “cash collateral” of sorts to investors who can then borrow money and bet on riskier assets like stocks. It’s also viewed as a safe haven during times of uncertainty, which has been the word du jour as Wall Street remains on edge that shifting trade dynamics could induce a self-inflicted recession. That’s why the moves in yields have been confusing. As tariff and recession headlines rattle through markets, investors should (in theory) be buying more bonds to protect themselves against surging inflation and deteriorating growth. Quite dramatically, that hasn’t been the case. So what’s going on? “Something has broken tonight in the bond market,” market veteran Jim Bianco said late Tuesday in a post on X. “We are seeing a disorderly liquidation. If I had to GUESS, the basis trade is in full unwind.” The basis trade, a highly levered trading strategy most often used by hedge funds, occurs when traders attempt to profit from a small price gap between Treasury futures and actual government bonds. The basic idea is to buy the bonds at a cheaper price and “short” the more expensive futures contract with the hope the two prices will eventually merge. Think of it this way: Let’s say you buy a concert ticket for $100 today but your friend agrees to pay you $110 for the ticket five days before the show. As the initial buyer, you know the two prices will eventually merge the closer you get to the concert, and can then lock in that small profit of $10. The problem? Hedge funds use a lot of borrowed money to do this at scale — sometimes up to 100 times in leveraged bets — which means if the price gap worsens, those small moves can create significant losses. Torsten Sløk, partner and chief economist at Apollo Global Management, said Tuesday that “exogenous shocks” like tariffs or an economic recession could “rapidly” unwind those highly leveraged positions and disrupt current market conditions. (Disclosure: Yahoo Finance is owned by Apollo Global Management.) At the same time, if the supply of Treasurys expands due to a growing budget deficit or the Fed reducing its balance sheet through quantitative tightening, that could also depress Treasury prices, “hurting the long leg of the trade.” But the basis trade unwind is not the only dire theory on Wall Street. There’s also a concern foreign investors might start selling their US Treasurys. “With all of this back-and-forth with China, there’s a possibility that they stop buying and boycott our debt,” Steve Sosnick, chief strategist at Interactive Brokers, told Yahoo Finance’s Josh Schafer in a phone interview on Tuesday. “Japan has the largest stock of Treasurys, but China has been a big buyer. What happens if that source of foreign demand shrinks or dries up completely?” In that case, Sosnick said, the US Treasury would have to issue at higher rates in order to make up for the loss: “The supply is not going down anytime soon, right? But you’re going to have to do something about demand.” And if markets are having a difficult time pricing low-risk assets like Treasurys, Sosnick added, “they’re certainly not going to have an easy time pricing higher-risk assets, like equities or crypto or anything of that nature.”

What Happened?

Shares of leading designer of graphics chips Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) jumped 15.7% in the afternoon session after markets rallied sharply on news that President Trump announced a 90-day tariff pause. Reciprocal tariffs were also dropped to 10% for most countries, sparking renewed optimism amid ongoing trade talks. The major stock indices rose as investors, growing impatient of seemingly irrational tariff actions, welcomed the pause as a sign of a more measured path forward. However, Trump was quick to note that China was not part of the pause. Instead, he prepared to raise tariffs on Chinese goods to 125% after China announced retaliatory tariffs on US imports. This tough stance on China stood in sharp contrast to the softer tone toward others. In a week marked by growing uncertainty, this news eased some of the pressure. The questions remain whether we are out of the woods and can sustain the rally or not. The shares closed the day at $114.24, up 18.1% from previous close. Is now the time to buy Nvidia? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.

What The Market Is Telling Us

Nvidia’s shares are extremely volatile and have had 33 moves greater than 5% over the last year. In that context, today’s move indicates the market considers this news meaningful but not something that would fundamentally change its perception of the business. The previous big move we wrote about was 5 days ago when the stock dropped 7.8% on the news that China imposed a 34% tariff on all U.S. imports amid escalating trade war tensions. This was especially rough for the US chipmakers because a big chunk of their business leans on demand out of China. The new tariffs not only threaten to erode profit margins but also risk reducing market share. Adding to the uncertainty, the Trump administration signaled the possibility of further regulatory action against the sector. Although semiconductor firms were notably excluded from the broad tariffs unveiled on April 2, 2025, their exclusion raised concerns that targeted restrictions could still be forthcoming. Nvidia is down 17.6% since the beginning of the year, and at $113.90 per share, it is trading 23.8% below its 52-week high of $149.43 from January 2025. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of Nvidia’s shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $17,326. Unless you’ve been living under a rock, it should be obvious by now that generative AI is going to have a huge impact on how large corporations do business. We prefer a lesser-known (but still profitable) semiconductor stock benefiting from the rise of AI.

U.S. Treasury yields climbed again Tuesday after a weak Treasury auction. Traders also weighed the effect of President Donald Trump’s revamped tariff policy on the outlook for economic growth and inflation. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose 12 basis points to 4.285%, while the the 2-year Treasury yield inched down 2 basis points at 3.715%. One basis point is equivalent to 0.01%. Yields and prices move in opposite directions. The Treasury Department auctioned $58 billion in 3-year Treasury notes Tuesday in the first coupon supply since Trump announced higher tariffs on April 2. Yields remained higher after what was a “weak” auction, according to Vail Hartman, U.S. rates strategist at BMO. Some traders have speculated foreign owners are selling some Treasuries, putting upward pressure on yields. The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield fell as low as 3.8% last week and traded below 3.9% early Monday before surging later in the day to hit 4.14% — its biggest one-day move in a year, according to Trade Nation analyst David Morrison. Over the weekend, Trump pledged to keep his aggressive tariff policy, imposing an initial, unilateral 10% tariff and a wider swath of “reciprocal” tariffs set to begin on April 9. Trump on Monday said he would slap additional 50% duties on U.S. imports from China if Beijing doesn’t lift the 34% tariffs it imposed on U.S. products last Friday. China said it won;t be intimidated by U.S. trade threats and vowed to “fight to the end.” “Because the tariffs announced thus far are higher than previously expected, we think the risk is now skewed toward more rate cuts by year-end,” said Saira Malik, head of Nuveen equities and fixed income. “Our probability-weighted guidance has increased from a total of four Fed cuts through 2025 and 2026 to 6.6 cuts, while our assessment of fair value for the 10-year U.S. Treasury yield has fallen from 4.5% to 4.0%,” she added.

European stocks were set to open lower on Wednesday, with markets struggling to maintain Tuesday’s positive momentum as country-specific tariffs from the U.S. started taking effect. The regional Stoxx 600 index had closed in the green on Tuesday, snapping a four-day loosing streak. The move higher came after Asia-Pacific stocks had kicked off a global equity rebound, which U.S. stocks also initially joined before pulling back. Unease about the fallout from U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs and retaliatory measures from the U.S.′ trading partners weighed on markets as concerns about more duties being announced grew and uncertainty persisted. Trump on Tuesday suggested the U.S. would soon announce “a very major tariff on pharmaceuticals,” and tripled the previously announced tariff rates on low-value packages exported to the U.S. from China via the international postal system. A slew of tariffs came into effect just after midnight stateside, with duties being enforced on imports from dozens of countries. The measures include a 104% tariff on Chinese imports. Some targeted countries are expected to hit back at the United States, including Canada, which on Tuesday reconfirmed plans to impose 25% retaliatory tariffs on U.S.-made vehicles. U.S. stock futures were last lower as investors braced themselves for potentially another rollercoaster day on Wall Street. Asia-Pacific markets also widely fell Wednesday.

An errant post on X may have just shaken the stock market, showing how influential — and unreliable — the social media platform can be. Unsourced “headlines” about a potential “90-day pause in tariffs” sent markets into a state of turbulence Monday morning as investors sought any indication of a reprieve from the Trump administration’s new levies. The problem: It wasn’t true. The White House swiftly denied the rumor shortly after it began to circulate online. The false posts may have originated from a real Fox News interview with National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett at around 8:30 a.m. ET. Hassett was asked whether President Donald Trump would “consider a 90-day pause in tariffs,” and he replied in part: “The president is (going to) decide what the president is (going to) decide.” According to CNN’s analysis, the first X post to claim Hassett said Trump would consider a 90-day pause in tariffs came at 10:11 a.m. ET from an account called “Hammer Capital” with the handle “yourfavorito,”which has barely 1,000 followers. At about 10:12 a.m., CNN’s Vanessa Yurkevich, who was on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, said that cheers had broken out, as stock indices — which were already recovering from early-morning lows — suddenly surged. “Walter Bloomberg,” an account with a much larger following that uses the handle “DeItaone” copy-and-pasted the original rumor along with a siren emoji at 10:13 a.m. On CNBC, anchors were seemingly baffled, wondering what was causing the turnaround. CNBC anchor David Faber and his network colleagues wondered aloud about the triggering “headline,” searching their computer screens for a wire service alert or any other indication of what could have caused stock market movements. By 10:15 a.m., CNBC anchors were reading the news on air. “I think we can go with this headline, apparently Hassett’s been saying Trump will consider a 90-day pause in tariffs for all countries except for China,” anchor Carl Quintanilla said. “We’re trying to source that exactly in terms of where that’s coming from,” Faber quickly added. CNBC showed the “headline” on screen less than a minute later. “HASSETT: TRUMP IS CONSIDERING A 90-DAY PAUSE IN TARIFFS FOR ALL COUNTRIES EXPECT CHINA,” the CNBC banner read, as if the news was confirmed. By 10:19, Reuters alerted the supposed comments, citing CNBC. Stocks would later decline as the White House firmly denied the supposed headline. CNBC reporters quickly reported the White House denial, and Reuters updated its stories, later issuing an advisory at 12:28 p.m. withdrawing the original alert along with a statement that the newswire service “regrets its error.” The “Walter Bloomberg” account appears to borrow its name from the Bloomberg financial news service to gain credibility. The account, which has more than 800,000 followers, often posts accurate news flashes from Bloomberg, Reuters and other outlets. “Hammer Capital” also posts headlines, as well as stock market memes. Both that account and “Hammer Capital” do not publicize their real identities. Both have blue checkmarks on X, which used to indicate the account holder’s identity had been verified. But when Musk took over the service formerly known as Twitter, he turned the blue checkmark into a paid service, meaning anyone could pay to appear verified and have their posts boosted on others’ timelines. Once the financial damage was done, “Walter Bloomberg” deleted the post, claiming they first saw it on Reuters, and market participants were left wondering what just happened. “Hammer Capital” said on X they first saw the news on Reuters and CNBC, although Reuters’ flash was at 10:19 a.m., sourced to CNBC. A CNBC spokesperson said in a statement: “As we were chasing the news of the market moves in real-time, we aired unconfirmed information in a banner. Our reporters quickly made a correction on air.” “Hammer Capital” denied making up the headline: “To be as abundantly clear as possible, trading desks started sending out this headline at 10:09. I was regurgitating what the market was reacting to, to my 600 followers. It was an incorrect interpretation of a Fox News interview,” they posted on Monday afternoon. Wherever the original source of the incorrect headline came from, it was amplified by trusted sources in financial news, creating a very expensive lesson in the value of accurate and reliable reporting.

Asia-Pacific markets opened higher Tuesday, rebounding from previous session’s losses over U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff policy and threats of even higher levies against China. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 added 0.18% at the open. Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 5.34% while the Topix gained 5.53%. South Korea’s Kospi rose 2.26% while the small-cap Kosdaq climbed 2.35%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index futures were at 19,653, weaker than the HSI’s last close of 19,828.3. Focus will be on Chinese stocks after Trump on Monday threatened additional 50% tariffs on China if Beijing did not lift its duties on U.S. imports. Hong Kong’s stock market led losses in the region on Monday, plummeting over 13% to log its steepest one-day decline since 1997, data from FactSet showed. Trump stuck to his aggressive global tariffs strategy over the weekend, with an initial unilateral 10% tariff going into effect Saturday. Wall Street had been hoping for signs of progress in negotiations between the U.S. and other countries, with the ‘reciprocal’ tariffs set to begin on April 9. “Asian equities suffered their worst rout in years, plunging to multi-year lows in a day marked by panic and uncertainty,” said Murthy Grandhi, company profiles analyst at data and analytics firm GlobalData. “The renewed trade war fears have reignited concerns of a global economic slowdown, shattering already fragile investor confidence,” he said, adding that the path forward hinges on policy clarity and diplomatic engagement. U.S. stock futures rose after the S&P 500 extended its losses for a third day following Trump’s tariffs announcement. Futures tied to the S&P 500 were about 1% higher, while Nasdaq-100 futures gained 1.1%. Futures linked to the Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 476 points, or 1.2%. Overnight in the U.S., the three major averages closed lower. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell for a third day following President Donald Trump’s tariff rollout, dropping 0.91% to close at 37,965.60.  The Nasdaq Composite inched higher by 0.10% to settle at 15,603.26. The S&P 500 shed 0.23% to end at 5,062.25.

Bitcoin fell below the $78,000 level as investors braced for more financial market volatility after U.S. equites suffered their worst decline since 2020 on the rollout of President Donald Trump’s restrictive global tariffs. The price of bitcoin was last lower by 6% at $77,730.03, according to Coin Metrics, after trading above the $80,000 for most of this year — barring a couple brief blips below it amid recent volatility. It’s off its January all-time high by 28%. The flagship cryptocurrency usually trades like a big tech stock and is often viewed by traders as a leading indicator of market sentiment, but last week it bucked the broader market meltdown – holding between $82,000 and $83,000 and rising to end the week as stocks tumbled and even gold fell. Other cryptocurrencies suffered bigger losses overnight. Ether and the token tied to Solana tumbled about 12% each. Bitcoin’s down move triggered a wave of long liquidations, as traders betting on an increase in its price were forced to sell their assets to cover their losses. In the past 24 hours, bitcoin has seen more than $247 million in long liquidations, according to CoinGlass. Ether saw $217 million in long liquidations in the same period. Rattled investors dumped their holdings of cryptocurrencies, which trade 24 hours, over the weekend as they anticipated further carnage, after Trump’s retaliatory tariffs raised global recession fears and caused investors to sell all risk. The duties on all imports, in addition to custom tariffs for major trading partners, have sparked worries of a global trade war that could lead the U.S. into a recession. Growing concerns about the far-reaching impact of the tariffs sent markets reeling worldwide. In the two sessions following the tariff announcement, global stocks wiped out $7.46 trillion in market value based on the market cap of the S&P Global Broad Market Index, according to S&P Dow Jones Indices. That figure includes $5.87 trillion lost in the U.S. stock market over those two sessions and another $1.59 trillion loss in market value in other major global markets. Bitcoin is down 15% in 2025 and, absent a crypto-specific catalyst, is expected to continue moving in tandem with equities as global recession fears overshadow any regulatory tailwinds crypto was expected to benefit from this year.

Asian markets plunged on Monday, deepening a global stocks rout triggered by US President Donald Trump’s trade war. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei fell by more than 8% shortly after opening. The share average, which tracks 225 of the country’s most valuable companies, has fallen below the 33,000 level for the first time since August 2024, according to Reuters. The broader Topix index last traded more than 7.5% lower, recovering from its steepest losses. Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said on Monday the government will continue to ask President Trump to lower tariffs against Japan, but acknowledged results “won’t come overnight,” according to Reuters. “As such, the government must take all available means” to cushion the economic blow from US tariffs such as offering funding support for domestic firms and taking measures to protect jobs, Ishiba reportedly told parliament. On Wednesday, Trump imposed a 24% across-the-board tariff on Japan, a defense treaty ally, which is due to take effect later this week. Asian markets are tracking the worst two-day stretch for Wall Street stocks in five years. US stock futures plunged Sunday evening after two sessions of sell-offs that wiped away over $5.4 trillion in market value. Global investors have rejected President Trump’s massive tariff regime, some of which went into effect on Saturday morning and even larger tariffs are set to launch on Wednesday. China retaliated fiercely on Friday, imposing a 34% tariff on all US goods, raising fears of an escalating and damaging trade war. On Sunday evening, Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that he didn’t intentionally crash markets but declined to predict how markets would trade in the future. “What’s going to happen with the market? I can’t tell you,” Trump said. “But I can tell you, our country has gotten a lot stronger, and eventually it’ll be a country like no other.” US stocks are set to open sharply lower Monday, putting the S&P 500 on the precipice of a bear market — a decline of 20% from its peak and an ominous sign for investors and perhaps the broader economy. South Korea’s Kospi tumbled more than 4.8% shortly after opening. Trading was halted for five minutes when a circuit breaker designed to prevent panic selling was triggered. In mainland China, the Shanghai Composite Index opened down 4.5% and last traded 6.7% lower. The blue-chip CSI300 index lost 7.5%. In Hong Kong, the benchmark Hang Seng index opened more than 9% lower. Taiwan’s Taiex plummeted more than 9.7% after opening. Almost all Taiwanese stocks, including TSMC and Foxconn, two of the island’s best-known export powerhouses, triggered circuit breakers, according to Taiwan’s Central News Agency. Both TSMC and Foxconn fell about 10%. In Australia, the benchmark ASX 200 index fell as much 6.3% in morning trade, while New Zealand’s NZX 50 lost more 3.5%. This is a developing story and will be updated.