Markets tumble, Powell warns, Trump doubles down: 10 things you should know amid tariff war | World News

The trade war between the United States and China has sent shockwaves through global markets with fears of a looming recession growing stronger. China has retaliated against President Donald Trump’s latest round of tariffs with its own measures. As Wall Street reels and policymakers scramble to respond, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has warned of rising inflation risks, while investors brace for uncertainty.
Here’s what you need to know:
China strikes back: In retaliation for President Trump’s sweeping tariffs, China announced additional 34 per cent levies on US goods. Beijing also revealed plans to add 16 US entities to an export control l and classify 11 others as “unreliable” entities. The decision comes after the US imposed additional 34 per cent tariffs on Chinese goods, bringing the total new levies to 54 per cent.
Trump responds: After China’s retaliation, Trump said “they cannot afford to do it.” “China played it wrong, they panicked – The one thing they cannot afford to do!” the US president wrote on Truth Social.  Earlier in the day, he had posted 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!!!”
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Trump versus Powell: Donald Trump urged Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell to “stop politics and cut rates” after Powell warned that Trump’s new tariffs could drive inflation higher and slow growth. Powell had warned that trade policies be monitored before adjusting monetary policy. Trump, however, insed it was the “perfect time” for a rate cut as falling inflation and rising jobs was a “Big win for America.”
Trump claims Viet victory: Trump announced on Truth Social that Vietnam was purportedly willing to cut its tariffs to zero if an agreement with the US is reached. “Just had a very productive call with To Lam, General Secretary of the Commun Party of Vietnam, who told me that Vietnam wants to cut their Tariffs down to ZERO if they are able to make an agreement with the US I thanked him on behalf of our Country, and said I look forward to a meeting in the near future,” Trump posted.
Wall Street setback: US chip companies, banks and oil majors fell sharply, pushing the tech-heavy Nasdaq index toward a bear market. Companies with big exposure to China and Taiwan for manufacturing their products were hard-hit, with Apple down 4.7 per cent and Nvidia down 3.4 per cent in early trade. The Nasdaq showed a 3.69 per cent decline, bringing the index 20 per cent below its all-time closing high in December.The FTSE (British stock exchange) was down almost 5 per cent at close on Friday, representing the biggest daily drop since early in the Covid pandemic.
Global recession odds: Investment bank JP Morgan now estimates a 60 per cent chance of a global recession year-end, up from 40 per cent previously. Japan’s Prime Miner Shigeru Ishiba has labelled the situation a “national crisis.” Meanwhile, the IMF warned that the new US tariffs have heightened the risk of sluggish global growth and urged the US to ease trade tensions.Story continues below this ad
Nato-speak Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte said the Trump adminration’s tariffs, even those targeting European allies, do not breach the Nato treaty. Rutte said trade disputes should remain separate from defence matters.
Ripple effects Canada reported job losses for the first time since 2022 due to tariff-related uncertainty. The European Union remains divided over whether to impose countermeasures against US trade policies.

India impact: Top Indian companies are facing a major challenge following US President Donald Trump’s announcement to raise tariffs. This move is expected to affect directly or indirectly many Indian corporates, including IT giants TCS and Infosys, automobile firms like Tata Motors, pharmaceutical companies such as Sun Pharma and Cipla – which are now set to be brought under the reciprocal tariff policy — and Nalco and Tata Steel.
Dollar gains vs euro The US dollar rose against the euro and trimmed losses versus the yen on Friday, after non-farm payrolls data showed the US economy added more jobs than expected in March. Non-farm payrolls rose 228,000 jobs last month after a downwardly revised 117,000 rise in February, the Labor Department said.
(With Reuters inputs) 
 
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd

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