China has said "the market has spoken" in rejecting Donald Trump's tariffs, asking the US to undo the damage on global markets by resolving differences with trading partners.
"The market has spoken," Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said in a post on Facebook this morning, posting a picture capturing Friday's falls on US markets. "Now is the time for the US to stop doing the wrong things and resolve the differences with trading partners through equal-footed consultation," Mr Guo wrote in English.
The UK’s key FTSE-100 stock market has suffered its worst one-day drop since the start of the pandemic, ending a week of havoc on global markets prompted by Donald Trump’s new tariffs war.
The index closed down 419.75 points, or 4.95 per cent, at 8,054.98, marking the biggest single-day decline since March 2020, when the index lost more than 600 points in one day.
All but one FTSE stock fell on Friday, with Rolls-Royce, banks and miners among those suffering the sharpest losses.
Sir Keir Starmer will be holding talks with global leaders this weekend.
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Key points
- China says 'market has spoken' after US tariffs spark selloff
- FTSE-100 suffers worst day since pandemic outbreak
- US indexes also record biggest drops in five years
- Starmer holds calls with Australian and Italian leaders on tariffs
Japan PM Ishiba plans phone call with Trump next week – report
06:44
,
Arpan Rai
Japanese prime minister Shigeru Ishiba is planning to arrange a telephone conversation next week with US president Donald Trump on tariffs, Jiji News reported this morning.
Mr Ishiba was speaking on a television programme aired this morning, Jiji said, when he expressed his intention to hold direct talks with the US leader.
US starts collecting Trump's new 10 per cent tariff
06:24
,
Arpan Rai
The US customs agents began collecting president Donald Trump's unilateral 10 per cent tariff on all imports from many countries today, with higher levies on goods from 57 larger trading partners due to start next week.
Among the countries first hit with the 10 per cent tariff are Australia, Britain, Colombia, Argentina, Egypt and Saudi Arabia. A US Customs and Border Protection bulletin to shippers indicates no grace period for cargoes on the water at midnight today.
The initial 10 per cent "baseline" tariff took effect at US seaports, airports and customs warehouses at 12.01 am ET (0401 GMT), ushering in Mr Trump's full rejection of the Second World War system of mutually agreed tariff rates.
"This is the single biggest trade action of our lifetime," said Kelly Ann Shaw, a trade lawyer at Hogan Lovells and former White House trade adviser during Mr Trump's first term.
China says 'market has spoken' after US tariffs spark selloff
06:07
,
Arpan Rai
China said "the market has spoken" in rejecting Donald Trump's tariffs, and called on Washington for "equal-footed consultation" after global markets' dramatic reaction to the trade levies.
"The market has spoken," Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said in a post on Facebook this morning. He also posted a picture capturing Friday's falls on US markets.
"Now is the time for the US to stop doing the wrong things and resolve the differences with trading partners through equal-footed consultation," Mr Guo wrote in English.
Mr Trump introduced additional 34 per cent tariffs on Chinese goods as part of steep levies imposed on most US trade partners, bringing the total duties on China this year to 54 per cent.
Several Chinese commerce associations in industries from healthcare and textiles to electronics also issued statements on Saturday calling for unity in exploring alternative markets and warning that the tariffs would worsen inflation in the US.
Taiwan unveils £6.7bn in help for companies to deal with US tariffs
06:01
,
Andy Gregory
Taiwan’s government has announced at least T$288 bn (£6.74bn) in financial help for companies and industries to deal with the impact of US tariffs, including export credits.
Donald Trump has imposed a whopping 32 per cent tariff on goods – excluding semiconductors – imported from Taiwan, just two months after the US became Taiwan’s top export destination. The US accounted for 28.5 per cent of the country’s total outbound sales in February, overtaking China and Hong Kong’s 28.4 per cent for the first time in 24 years, Taiwan’s Central News Agency reported, citing official data.
Speaking at a news conference in Taipei, premier Cho Jung-tai reiterated that the government regarded the tariffs as unreasonable, saying it would provide T$88bn to help companies affected. Finance minister Chuang Tsui-yun said the government would also provide T$200bn in trade financing for exporters.
The announcements were made before financial markets re-open in Taiwan on Monday, having been closed on Thursday and Friday for a holiday.
See the uninhabited island near Antarctica that Trump imposed 10% tariffs on
05:00
,
Andy Gregory
Photos: Wall Street bleeds amid Trump's aggressive tariff policies
04:49
,
Arpan Rai
Starmer holds calls with Australian and Italian leaders on tariffs
04:34
,
Arpan Rai
Prime minister Keir Starmer spoke to Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese and Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni about the approach to US tariffs yesterday, saying they agreed an "all-out trade war would be extremely damaging".
In separate calls, the British leader said it had been "clear for a long time that like-minded countries must maintain strong relationships and dialogue to ensure our mutual security and maintain economic stability", a spokesperson from his office said in a statement.
"They all agreed that an all-out trade war would be extremely damaging and is in nobody's interests, while agreeing to keep in close contact in the coming days."
Recap: Stock market suffers worst week since 2020 after Trump's tariffs
04:30
,
Arpan Rai
Markets are facing their worst crisis since the Covid-19 crash after China matched president Donald Trump's big raise in tariffs in the escalating trade war.
The worldwide sell-off for financial markets slammed into a higher and scarier gear.
The S&P 500 plummeted 6 per cent on Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged 5.5 per cent and the Nasdaq composite dropped 5.8 per cent.
Not even a better-than-expected report on the US job market, which is usually the economic highlight of each month, was enough to stop the slide.
TikTok deal put on hold after China objects over tariffs, sources say
04:24
,
Arpan Rai
A deal to spin off the US assets of TikTok was put on hold after China indicated it would not approve the deal following president Donald Trump's tariffs announcement this week, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.
Mr Trump yesterday extended by 75 days a deadline for ByteDance to sell US assets of the popular short video app to a non-Chinese buyer, or face a ban that was supposed to have taken effect in January under a 2024 law.
ByteDance said early today that differences remained over the deal.
"(We are) still in talks with the US government, but no agreement has been reached, and the two sides still have differences on many key issues," the company said in a statement on its official account on Chinese social media platform WeChat.
"In accordance with Chinese law, any agreement is subject to the relevant review procedures," it said.
Trump’s tariffs squeeze Republicans as they struggle to pass his agenda
04:12
,
Arpan Rai
If president Donald Trump hoped to get a better day on Wall Street two days after his massive tariff announcement, he was sorely mistaken.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed yesterday losing 2,231.07 points, or 5.50%, another brutal dive.
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell spoke to journalists at a business reporters’ conference yesterday and while he did not comment on politics, he did offer a withering assessment of the effects of the tariffs.
“While uncertainty remains elevated, it is now becoming clear that tariff increases will be significantly larger than expected, and the same is likely to be true of the economic effects, which will include higher inflation and slower growth,” Mr Powell said.
US senate votes till late on Republican budget plans including Trump's tariff
04:05
,
Arpan Rai
The discussions and voting from the US senators continued all night over a Republican budget plan that's central to president Donald Trump's agenda for trillions of dollars in tax breaks and boosts to border security and defence spending.
The US economy is churning over Mr Trump's vast tariff scheme sent stocks plummeting, and experts are warning of soaring costs for consumers at home and threats of a potential recession. Even some Republicans have expressed concerns.
In what is being called “vote-a-rama”, Democrats are intent on making the effort as politically painful as possible, with votes on dozens of amendments to the package that GOP senators will have to defend before next year's midterm elections.
One Republican senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, expressed his own misgivings about tax breaks adding to the federal deficits and said he has assurances that Mr Trump officials would seek the cuts elsewhere.
"This vote isn't taking place in a vacuum," he said, a nod to the turmoil over Mr Trump's tariffs.
Trump tariffs to force quicker US and EU interest rate cuts, says investment bank
04:00
,
Andy Gregory
Donald Trump’s global tariffs will stymie economic growth and cause rising inflation, forcing the US Federal Reserve to start lowering interest rates from the end of this year – while the European Central Bank could cut rates as soon as this month, analysts have forecast.
The tariffs are “worse than feared”, said Japanese investment bank Nomura, lowering its US growth estimate to 0.6 per cent from 1.5 per cent, on a quarterly basis, and hiking its core year-end inflation forecast to 4.7 per cent – up from 3.5.
As a result, the brokerage expects the Fed to lower rates in December, taking the policy rate to 4.125 per cent, followed by two more 25 bps cuts in the first quarter of 2026. It had previously expected the central bank to hold at 4.25-4.5 per cent until the second quarter of 2026.
“Increased downside risks to growth and a more front-loaded inflation shock should allow cuts to resume sooner than we had expected”, Nomura economists said in a note on Thursday.
And the ECB will be forced to act even quicker than the Fed, said Nomura, which now expects the central bank to cut rates in April as well as June, resulting in a terminal rate of 2 per cent, from 2.25 per cent predicted previously.
Rubio discusses tariffs with Netanyahu, says State Department
03:48
,
Arpan Rai
US secretary of state Marco Rubio has discussed tariffs with Israel's prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the State Department said in a readout of their conversation last night in the aftermath of a sweeping new tariff policy announced by the United States.
Unspecified Israeli goods exports to the United States, Israel's largest single trading partner, face a 17 per cent tariff.
The two discussed the situation in Gaza and the Trump administration’s resolve to free the hostages in Gaza, the readout said.
France open to letting deficit reduction target slip amid tariff uncertainty, minister says
03:00
,
Andy Gregory
France’s finance minister Eric Lombard has opened the door to letting the French government’s deficit reduction target slip this year – ruling out extra spending cuts and tax increases to offset a potential shortfall in growth.
Speaking to BFM TV, Mr Lombard said things were uncertain and it was necessary to wait to see in the coming weeks how negotiations with the United States would go over recently announced tariffs to have a better idea of their impact on the French economy.
If tariffs on the European Union – amounting to 20 per cent on EU imports, with higher levels on certain French territories – were maintained, Mr Lombard said, “revenue would decrease, the GDP would decrease, which would – without getting too technical – degrade the level of the deficit, and I think in that case, to protect the French people, I think we must accept that.”
France has been aiming to trim its deficit to 5.4 per cent of economic output this year from 5.8 per cent last year as a step toward bringing its shortfall in line with a European Union ceiling of 3 per cent by 2029.
But Paris still has one of the biggest fiscal gaps in the EU and, unlike other big European countries, it will not be able to bring its debt burden to pre-pandemic levels by the end of the decade.
Exclusive: Tony Blair urges Starmer not to retaliate against Trump tariffs
02:00
,
Andy Gregory
Sir Tony Blair has urged Sir Keir Starmer not to retaliate against Donald Trump’s tariffs, saying such a move wouldn’t be in the UK’s “best interests”.
It comes as officials scramble to respond to the news that British exports to the US would face a blanket 10 per cent levy, sending global markets tumbling and sparking fears the chancellor’s fiscal headroom could be wiped out.
In a rare intervention, the former prime minister told students at King’s College London that he supported Sir Keir’s “cool heads” approach to Trump’s “Liberation Day”, and he didn’t really understand the intellectual argument behind the tariff policy.
“I don’t think it is in the UK’s best interest to retaliate,” he said, but admitted he did not know where developments over the tariffs would end.
Jane Dalton and Millie Cooke have more details in this exclusive report:
Editorial: ‘Liberation Day’ will live in infamy
01:30
,
Jane Dalton
Markets will bounce back, Rubio insists
01:30
,
Jane Dalton
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has defended Mr Trump’s tariffs, saying he was confident the markets would bounce back.
“Businesses around the world, including in trade and global trade, they just need to know what the rules are,” he said from a Nato meeting in Brussels. “Once they know what the rules are, they will adjust to those rules.”
“I don’t think it’s fair to say economies are crashing. Markets are crashing because markets are based on the stock value of companies who today are embedded in modes of production that are bad for the United States.”
Trump closes China tariff loophole used by fast fashion retailers
01:00
,
Andy Gregory
Donald Trump has signed an executive order to shut down a trade loophole known as “de minimis” that has allowed low-value packages from China and Hong Kong to enter the US free of duties.
The move appears to be a massive blow to fast-fashion companies such as China-based Shein and Temu, which managed to rapidly expand in the US through the almost century-old de minimis rule. This tariff exemption will end on 2 May, the White House said on Wednesday.
More here:
Bull market is dead, say analysts
Saturday 5 April 2025 00:30
,
Jane Dalton
Analysts say the bull market — which occurs when prices are rising and investor optimism is high — is now “dead.”
“The bull market is dead, and it was destroyed by ideologues and self-inflicted wounds,” Emily Bowersock Hill, CEO of Bowersock Capital Partners, told CNBC.
“While the market may be close to the bottom in the short-term, we are concerned about the impact of a global trade war on long-term economic growth.”
IMF says Trump tariffs are a ‘significant risk’ to global economic outlook
Friday 4 April 2025 23:59
,
Andy Gregory
Donald Trump's sweeping tariff campaign presents a “significant risk” to the global economic outlook “at a time of sluggish growth”, the head of the International Monetary Fund has warned.
Managing director Kristalina Georgieva said officials were still assessing the macroeconomic implications of the tariff plans Mr Trump announced this week.
"It is important to avoid steps that could further harm the world economy," she said as global markets bled yesterday.
“We appeal to the United States and its trading partners to work constructively to resolve trade tensions and reduce uncertainty,” she added.
The 1945 manual that may have inspired Trump
Friday 4 April 2025 23:30
,
Jane Dalton
Vietnam asks US to postpone hefty tariff
Friday 4 April 2025 23:01
,
Andy Gregory
Vietnam has reportedly asked the US to postpone the hefty 46 per cent tariff imposed by Donald Trump, which will be implemented on 9 April.
The government, which was slapped with one of the highest tariffs, claims “there is still room for discussion and negotiation” between the two sides.
The tariffs will have a “negative impact” on Vietnam’s exports, the government said on its website.
"We believe that the decision is not in line with the reality of mutually beneficial economic and trade cooperation between the two countries," Vietnam's foreign ministry spokesperson Pham Thu Hang told Reuters today.
The US is Vietnam's largest export market, and in 2021, exports to the US were valued at $142bn, nearly 30 per cent of the country's GDP. Vietnam's trade surplus with the US exceeded $123bn last year.
Banking giant predicts 60% chance of recession
Friday 4 April 2025 22:30
,
Jane Dalton
Watch: Marco Rubio denies economies are crashing after Trump tariff announcement
Friday 4 April 2025 22:00
,
Andy Gregory
Opinion: I promise green energy will save UK economy – Ed Miliband
Friday 4 April 2025 21:30
,
Jane Dalton
ICYMI: Trump tells UK to buy chlorinated chicken from US if it wants tariff relief
Friday 4 April 2025 21:00
,
Andy Gregory
Britain must allow US chlorine-washed chicken into UK markets if it wants relief from sweeping tariffs, Donald Trump has indicated.
In a statement published alongside the tariff announcement, the White House said: “The UK maintains non-science-based standards that severely restrict US exports of safe, high-quality beef and poultry products.”
It suggested that Britain’s ban on chlorinated chicken was among a range of “non-tariff barriers” that limit the US’s ability to trade.
The UK has long ruled out allowing imports of chlorine-washed chicken from the US due to health concerns, with Rachel Reeves in November reiterating her opposition to any concessions on the issue.
Read more details in this report:
Richard Branson calls for Trump to U-turn on ‘mistake’
Friday 4 April 2025 20:48
,
Jane Dalton
John Rentoul answers your Trump tariffs questions
Friday 4 April 2025 20:30
,
Jane Dalton
In a live Q&A for The Independent, chief political commentator John Rentoul answered your questions on Trump’s trade war, the UK’s response and whether Keir Starmer can steer a better course with the EU.
They discussed soft power, chlorinated chicken, the single market, and whether China really stands to gain.
We've rounded up the biggest questions from readers – and Rentoul's answers here.
Will cheese prices soar?
Friday 4 April 2025 20:00
,
Andy Gregory
A collection of feta producers in Greece have already noted they’ll be severely impacted, with half their sales to America likely to disappear. “We have to divert these quantities to other markets,” said the head of Greece's association of dairy industries.
That could mean lower prices elsewhere to stoke demand, or trying to find new territories to sell into. But even the latter could see price rises as the wider economic impacts of recession risk and supply chain disruptions are felt.
The European Dairy Association has similarly criticised the move as “unjustified”.
Global trade war intensifies and shares tumble – full report
Friday 4 April 2025 19:34
,
Jane Dalton
Will there be a stock market crash?
Friday 4 April 2025 19:10
,
Jane Dalton
“If anything, it could be argued there is now an opportunity to buy shares in companies or funds at much lower prices,” says one expert:
Top brands and US farmers set to be hit worst in US-China trade war
Friday 4 April 2025 18:55
,
Jane Dalton
Think twice before bailing out of shares, financial advisers say
Friday 4 April 2025 18:42
,
Jane Dalton
Full trade war would be damaging, leaders say
Friday 4 April 2025 18:35
,
Jane Dalton
Sir Keir Starmer, Australia’s Anthony Albanese and Italy’s Giorgia Meloni agreed an "all-out trade war would be extremely damaging" during phone calls, Downing Street said.
The prime minister said it had been "clear for a long time that like-minded countries must maintain strong relationships and dialogue to ensure our mutual security and maintain economic stability", a spokesperson from his office said.
Starmer begins talks with world leaders
Friday 4 April 2025 18:19
,
Jane Dalton
Prime minister Sir Keir Starmer has held talks with his Australian and Italian counterparts – Anthony Albanese and Giorga Meloni – on their approach to Donald Trump’s tariffs, a Downing Street spokesperson has said.
No 10 has already said Sir Keir will be holding a series of talks with global leaders this weekend:
FTSE loses year's gains
Friday 4 April 2025 18:00
,
Jane Dalton
The FTSE-100 has lost all the gains it has made so far this year, and more.
About £3.8 trillion wiped off world stock markets
Friday 4 April 2025 17:41
,
Jane Dalton
Analysts estimate that about $4.9 trillion (£3.8 trillion) have been wiped off the value of the global stock market since the US president announced his tariffs on Wednesday evening.
AJ Bell investment analyst Dan Coatsworth said: “China’s retaliation to Trump’s latest round of tariffs means that both sides are not backing down.
“It caps off a horrible week for financial markets and dragged share prices even lower.
“The escalation in tariffs is bad for US companies who buy goods from China, and vice versa, because their costs will go up.
“It’s also bad for the world in general as we now have a repeat of the heightened geopolitical tensions between the US and China which dominated Trump’s first term in office.
“The rapid pullback in stocks and shares over the past few days has put a dent in people’s investments, including those in the US who were meant to have benefited from Trump’s actions.
“Instead, his tactics have caused shockwaves in every corner of the world.”
US indexes also suffer worst drops since 2020
Friday 4 April 2025 17:11
,
Jane Dalton
Both the S&P 500 and Dow Jones indexes also suffered their worst days since 2020 as US stocks tumbled again.
The S&P 500, which tracks the country's leading listed companies, slid by as much as 3.6% to about 5,200, shortly after stock markets in New York opened.
This took the index down to its lowest level since August.
The Dow Jones, which tracks 30 large US companies, and the technology-focused Nasdaq index also dropped around 3%.
FTSE suffers worst day in five years
Friday 4 April 2025 16:49
,
Jane Dalton
The FTSE-100 dropped 3.8 per cent – its worst day since 27 March 2020, as the Covid pandemic hit the UK.
After China announced it a 34% reciprocal tariff on imports of all US products, the index dropped by about 4%, later recovering a little before dipping again.
US labour market shows resilience prior to Trump's tariff announcement
Friday 4 April 2025 15:35
,
Andy Gregory
The US economy added far more jobs than expected in March, prior to Donald Trump’s tariffs – which is likely to test the American labour market’s resilience in the months ahead.
The US Labour Department's closely watched employment report on Friday showed nonfarm payrolls – which excludes those in agriculture, private households, and not-for-profits – increased by 228,000 jobs last month, after a downwardly revised 117,000 rise in February.
Economists polled by Reuters had forecast payrolls advancing by 135,000 jobs after a previously reported 151,000 rise in February. Estimates ranged from 50,000 to 185,000. Part of the rise in payrolls was a rebound after freezing temperatures curbed activity in January and February.
“This is a drop of good news in a sea of uncertainty, a footnote given the barrage of activities this week,” said Olu Sonola, head of US economic research at Fitch Ratings. “However, this is looking in the rear-view mirror, next month's jobs report will be more consequential.”
‘Like an operation performed without anaesthesia’
Friday 4 April 2025 15:15
,
Andy Gregory
Donald Trump has said Americans may feel “some pain” because of tariffs, but he has also said the long-term goals – including getting more manufacturing jobs back to the United States – are worth it. On Thursday, he likened the situation to a medical operation, where the US economy is the patient.
“For investors looking at their portfolios, it could have felt like an operation performed without anaesthesia,” Brian Jacobsen, chief economist at Annex Wealth Management, told Reuters.
But Jacobsen also said the next surprise for investors could be how quickly tariffs get negotiated down. “The speed of recovery will depend on how, and how quickly, officials negotiate,” he said.
Nasdaq enters ‘bear market’ territory
Friday 4 April 2025 14:48
,
Andy Gregory
After opening 3 per cent lower today, the tech-heavy Nasdaq has dropped more than 20 per cent from its all-time closing high touched in December – putting it on course to confirm a bear market.
Trump says China ‘played it wrong’ in retaliation against US tariffs
Friday 4 April 2025 14:46
,
Andy Gregory
Donald Trump has claimed that China “played it wrong” after Beijing retaliated against new US tariffs, unveiling countermeasures that included additional duties of 34 per cent on all US goods.
“China played it wrong, they panicked – the one thing they cannot afford to do!” Mr Trump wrote in all caps in post on his social media platform.
Earlier, the US president wrote, also in all caps: “To the many investors coming into the United States and investing massive amounts of money, my policies will never change. This is a great time to get rich, richer than ever before!!!”
