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Friday Afternoon Coffee - Markets Update - 4 Apr 2025 - Global Markets Sink as China Retaliates Against Trump’s Tariffs
- The Trade Academy Team
- Apr 4
- 3 min read
Markets Update: China struck back with 34% tariffs on U.S. goods, following Trump’s announcement on Wednesday of 10% duties on most U.S. imports, and significantly higher rates for dozens of other countries.
Global Markets Roundup: 4 Apr 2025
Global stocks extended their steep slide Friday, oil prices cratered, and investors rushed into government bonds after China retaliated against President Donald Trump’s sweeping new tariffs, escalating fears of a full-blown trade war and global recession. The Nasdaq Composite neared bear market territory, while Europe’s STOXX 600 confirmed a correction, underscoring the widespread investor alarm. sparked by .
Trump’s tariff announcement marks the most aggressive trade barriers imposed by the U.S. in over a century.
Wall Street Plunges as Tech, Banks and Retailers Suffer
The selloff was widespread:
Dow Jones Industrial Average: -1,601.47 points (-3.96%)
S&P 500: -250.57 points (-4.64%)
Nasdaq Composite: -787.62 points (-4.77%)
The S&P 500 has now lost over $4 trillion in market value in just two days, topping the two-day pandemic-induced selloff in March 2020, according to LSEG data.
Tech and retail giants were hit hard.
Apple (AAPL), Nvidia (NVDA), and Amazon (AMZN) all fell sharply.
Nike (NKE) and Ralph Lauren (RL) tumbled on fears of slowing demand and rising production costs.
Banks, including Citigroup (C) and Bank of America (BAC), lost about 10% each.
Fed Caught in the Middle
Despite a strong U.S. jobs report, the market focus remained on monetary policy and trade fallout. Fed Chair Jerome Powell called the tariffs “larger than expected,” warning they could lead to higher inflation and slower growth. While the Fed does not forecast a recession, Powell acknowledged the private sector is increasingly expecting one.
Markets now expect four rate cuts from the Fed this year, starting in June. Futures also point to easing by the Bank of England and the European Central Bank.
Bond Yields Slide, Safe Havens Surge
Investors flooded into safe-haven assets:
The U.S. 10-year Treasury yield dropped 12.2 basis points to 3.93%, after touching a six-month low.
German 10-year yields fell as much as 17 basis points.
Currency Moves: Dollar Rebounds, Euro Slips
Oil Tumbles, Commodities Mixed
Trade war fears sent crude sharply lower:
U.S. crude (CL1!): -7.74% to $61.77/barrel
Brent (BRN1!): -6.86% to $65.33/barrel
Gold futures slipped 2.2% to $3,046.70, after hitting a record $3,201.60 earlier in the week, as investors took profits amid market volatility.
Commodity Spotlight: Cocoa, Coffee, Soybeans
Cocoa plunged, with NY cocoa (CCK25) down 7.76%, and London cocoa (CAK25) off 4.12%, as traders feared tariffs would weaken consumer demand for chocolate globally.
Arabica coffee dropped to $3.74/lb, its lowest since January, pressured by trade tensions with key exporters Brazil, Vietnam, and Indonesia, which now face tariffs of 10%, 46%, and 32%, respectively.
Soybeans (ZS1!) fell 30½ cents to $9.81/bushel, hitting their lowest level of 2025, after China’s retaliatory tariffs cast doubt over U.S. farm exports.
Wheat (ZW1!) dropped 7¾ cents to $5.28¼, while corn (ZC1!) edged up 1½ cents to $4.59 after Mexico—a major corn buyer—was spared from the U.S. tariffs.
Looking forward, refer to the economic calendar below to see the upcoming events scheduled for today and the rest of the week.
General news - Information source from multiple newswires.
The article and the data is for general information use only, not advice!
The Trade Academy Team