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(Sharecast News) - Trading screens were a sea of red as European markets plunged at the open as US President Donald Trump ignited a global trade war.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 index was down 1.52% at 528 in early deals. Germany's DAX slumped 2.2% as its car industry faced 25% levies, while Britain's FTSE 100 fell 1.16% and France's CAC-40 2%. The Eurostoxx 50, which covers the eurozone, was 2.2% lower.
Trump on Wednesday unleashed a swingeing and bigger-than-expected "reciprocal" tariff policy, with a 10% minimum levy on more than 180 trading partners, accusing them all of "currency manipulation and trade barriers" and hitting some of the poorest countries in the world hardest, including 46% on Vietnam and 49% on Cambodia.
The new measures were in addition to new duties on steel and aluminium, extra charges for China and 25% tariffs on vehicle and spare parts imports. China now faces a real rate of 54% after Trump added a 34% reciprocal levy.
"Trump's bold attempt to reshape international trade has sent shockwaves through global markets. The effects of 'liberation day' are being felt far and wide, with Asian markets down overnight, European stocks under pressure in early trading, and US futures pointing to a big drop later today," said Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown.
"With tariffs reaching levels unseen in over a century, the US is poised to rake in an additional $600bn in tariff revenue in an optimistic scenario, or put that another way, that'd be a $600bn added cost for businesses or consumers to stomach."
Gold was still in high demand as investors sought safe havens amid the turmoil. The precious metal was up slightly at $3,123.22 as of 0732 GMT, after hitting an all-time high of $3,167.57. Meanwhile oil prices fell on fears of a global economic slowdown, with Brent crude down 0.16% to $74.37.
In equity news, shipping giant Maersk fell more than 6%, while German sports brand Puma tanked 10%.
Among the few winners, currency transfer specialist Wise gained more than 5% as it told investors it expected to deliver underlying income growth of 15-20% and underlying pre-tax profit margin at the upper end of its target range.
Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com