The global stock market rout triggered by Donald Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs worsened today.
London’s FTSE 100 index opened 6% lower, while S&P 500 is set to enter bear market territory later.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell by more than 7% in trading this morning.
FTSE 100 Live Monday
- US index set for bear market
- Ackman urges tariffs pause
- Shell cuts LNG guidance
Market update: FTSE 100 down 5% as turmoil continues, Barclays down 7%
10:39 , Graeme EvansA 5% slide today pushed the FTSE 100 index to its lowest level in over a year as the turmoil caused by Donald Trump’s “liberation day” tariffs intensified.
The latest £90 billion slump in the value of the blue-chip index came after Trump doubled down on his trade policies by insisting markets must take their “medicine.”
His comments fuelled expectations of another bleak session on Wall Street, where futures are pointing to a fresh fall of more than 3% for the S&P 500 index.
The benchmark lost more than 10% of its value in the previous two sessions and is on course to land in bear market territory following today’s opening bell.
Asia markets tumbled earlier as Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index returned from a three-day weekend by falling 13% in the biggest drop since 1997.
Big fallers included the e-commerce giant Alibaba, which lost 18% as Beijing hit back on Friday by announcing tariffs of its own. Tokyo’s tech-focused Nikkei 225 fell by almost 8% and the Shanghai Composite by 7%.
AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould said: “This market sell-off feels brutal because it is relentless. Often, we see one or two bad days then a rebound. We’re now on day three and the sell-off is intensifying, not dying down.
“Fundamentally, investors are worried about a big hit to corporate earnings and a massive slowdown in economic growth.
“The potential end to globalisation throws up more questions than answers and that uncertainty is causing havoc on the markets.”
Economic proxies were hit hard in the latest FTSE 100 sell-off, including banks on the prospect of weaker business activity and lower interest rates.
Barclays, which has credit card lending and investment bank operations in the US, was the worst performer in the sector after a decline of 7% or 17.35p to 232.7p. Its shares have now lost a fifth of their value in the space of a week.
Asia-facing HSBC fell 3% or 22.5p to 737.5p and NatWest by 12.9p to 401.5p, having fallen by as much as 7% earlier in the session.
The mood of risk aversion meant investors dumped some of the past year’s best performing stocks as British Airways owner IAG fell 8% or 18.4p to 219.6p and Rolls-Royce lost 7% or 44p to 615p.
A month ago, they were above 300p and 800p respectively.
The sinking of US tech valuations left Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust down 8% or 66.2p to 789.2p and Polar Capital Technology Trust off 18.5p to 245p.
Shell and BP fell another 7% and 6% respectively - off 182p to 2299.5p and 23.4p to 347.3p - after recession fears caused the Brent Crude price to fall another 4% to a four-year low of $62.90 a barrel.
The FTSE 100 index fell 399.23 points to 7655.75, leaving the top flight almost 10% lower since Thursday evening. Every stock lost ground in today’s session, with Taylor Wimpey the most resilient after a decline of 1.4% or 1.4p to 102.25p.
The FTSE 250 index fell 4.5% or 830.21 points to its lowest level since November 2023 at 17,353.14. Ocado shares slid 9% and aerospace supplier Senior by 10%.
Shell shares down 7%, cuts LNG output guidance
09:35 , Graeme EvansShell shares are down 7% or 184p to 2297.4p, a level last seen in mid-2023 after the price of Brent Crude fell another 3.5% to a four-year low of $63.28 a barrel
The decline came as the energy giant published a first quarter trading update that included a cut to guidance for liquefied natural gas production.
The lower figure between 6.4 million and 6.8 million metric tonnes followed cyclones and unplanned maintenance of some of its assets in Australia
US stocks set for fresh slide, earnings season looms
09:20 , Graeme EvansWall Street is braced for a third successive session of heavy losses, with futures trading currently pointing to a fall of more than 3.5% for the S&P 500 index.
The benchmark has lost more than 10% of its value in the past two sessions and is on course to land in bear market territory following today’s opening bell.
With no sign of the US president backing down on tariffs, the start of the US earnings season later this week is likely to add to volatility. Delta Airlines reports on Wednesday before JP Morgan Chase and Wells Fargo on Friday.
Richard Hunter, head of markets at Interactive Investor, said: “The clear concern remains that until the dust begins to settle, it will be nigh on impossible to provide earnings projections of any worth, or indeed whether a potential global recession is indeed on the cards.
“With the odds of recession in the US now generally rising to 60% or above, the Federal Reserve has given no signs that it will intervene yet in an attempt to underpin a slowing economy.
“Indeed, the very inflationary impact of the tariffs may delay any such decision to cut at a time when rising prices were on the cusp of coming under control.”
Big falls continue as investors urged to think long term
09:00 , Graeme EvansThere are no risers in the FTSE 100 index, with Severn Trent the “best performing” stock following a 1.5% decline.
Among the heavy fallers, Rolls-Royce is down another 9% or 56.6p to 602.4p. It is back below the level seen before February’s forecast-beating results, having surged above 800p less than a month ago.
British Airways owner IAG also shed a chunk of its recent strong gains, falling 7% or 17p to its lowest level since October at 221p.
GKN Aerospace owner Melrose Industries is down 9% or 37.2p to 387.8p while BAE Systems declined 67.5p to 1450p.
Hargreaves Lansdown head of markets Susannah Streeter said: “A sea of red on markets will inevitably be troubling for investors.
“It is however, important not to panic and look at long-term investment horizons. History has shown that markets do recover from times of crisis and high uncertainty.
“It is always worth keeping an eye on an investment portfolio and ensuring that you are well diversified across a mix of geographies and asset classes to spread the risk. Drip feeding an investment portfolio can also help ride out the volatility.”
Banks, miners and oil stocks lead FTSE 100 slump
08:23 , Graeme EvansGlobal recession fears and the prospect of much lower interest rates have heaped more pressure on London’s leading banking stocks.
Barclays is off 7% or 17.7p to 232.35p, Lloyds Banking Group down 5% or 3.5p to 61.5p and NatWest 7% or 29.1p lower at 384.3p.
Among the Asia-facing banks, HSBC is 5% or 37.4p cheaper at 722.6p and Standard Chartered down 7% or 67.6p to 891.2p.
In the mining sector, Glencore lost another 7% and Anglo American fell by 8%.
The fall of Brent Crude to below $64 a barrel caused BP to weaken 7% or 25.5p to 345.15p and Shell to tumble 7% or 178.5p to 2303p.
FTSE 100 slides 6% in early dealings
08:11 , Graeme EvansThe FTSE 100 index has slid by a worse than expected 6% in early dealings.
The fall of 446.6 points to 7608.38 leaves London’s top flight at its lowest level in over a year.
This compares with a record 8871 seen as recently as early March.
The FTSE 250 index is down 5% or 891 points to 17,474.
Wall Street slide continues, Ackman calls for 30 day tariffs pause
07:53 , Graeme EvansPresident Trump showed no sign that he is in a mood for backing down on tariffs when he spoke to reporters on board Air Force One yesterday.
He said: “What’s going to happen with the market? I can’t tell you. But I can tell you our country has gotten a lot stronger, and eventually it’ll be a country like no other.”
Billionaire fund manager Bill Ackman, who endorsed Trump’s run for president, called for the tariffs to be paused for 30 days to avert an “economic nuclear winter”.
Traders are pricing in multiple Federal Reserve rate cuts in response to the increased chances of recession, although the central bank’s chair Jerome Powell also warned on Friday over the inflationary impact of tariffs..
With no sign of a shift in Trump’s position, the S&P 500 index is now seen opening about 5% lower later today.
IG chief market analyst Chris Beauchamp said: “Further losses are on the cards in Europe and in US futures, suggesting the rush to get out at any price has not yet abated.
“The wave of selling since Wednesday has seen calls grow for an emergency rate cut, but Powell’s speech on Friday confirms that investors are on their own for the time being.
“After China’s retaliation on Friday, we are now waiting to see how other major trading partners of the US respond.”
FTSE 100 seen below 8000, S&P 500 set for bear market
07:21 , Graeme EvansLondon’s FTSE 100 index starts today’s session at its lowest level since November after dropping 419.75 points, or 4.95%, to close at 8054.98 on Friday.
The biggest single-day decline since March 2020 included an 11% fall for Rolls-Royce and 10% for Glencore.
The top flight is now more than 9% lower than its record close at the start of March.
Having lasted traded below the 8000 threshold in April 2024, the FTSE 100 index is seen falling another 2% to about 7855 in today’s session.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 5.5% on Friday after China responded to Donald Trump’s liberation day announcement with a 34% tariff on imports of all US products from Thursday.
The Nasdaq Composite entered bear market territory, with Apple shares among the biggest fallers on Friday after a 7% slump.
S&P 500 futures are currently down another 3.5%, meaning the index is on course for bear market territory based on a fall of more than 20% since mid-February.
FTSE 100 slide set to continue, Asia markets tumble
07:00 , Graeme EvansThe rout for global stock markets is continuing after leading Asia benchmarks tumbled and futures trading pointed to more heavy losses in London.
Having been closed on Friday, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index fell by more than 11% and the Shanghai Composite reversed by 7%.
The FTSE 100 index, which lost 7% last week in its worst performance since March 2020, is forecast by IG Index to shed another 1.9% or 150 points.
Dealings in futures markets suggests that leading Wall Street benchmarks will open at least 3% lower after the S&P 500 index and Nasdaq fell by close to 6% on Friday..
A record number of shares were traded on Wall Street on Friday as investors reacted to Beijing’s retaliation to Donald Trump’s liberation day tariffs.
On commodity markets, Brent Crude is down another 2.8% to $63.72 a barrel.
