Trump’s 100 percent tariff charge on Chinese imports sparks fears of global recession

11.10.2025
President Donald Trump sent global markets into a tailspin on Friday after announcing plans for a 100 percent tariff on Chinese imports – a shock escalation in his trade war that analysts warn could trigger the worst market collapse since 1929.
The S&P 500 plunged 2.7 percent, the Dow Jones Industrial Average sank 878 points, and the NASDAQ Composite slid 3.6 percent by the closing bell in New York – the biggest one-day fall since 2022.
Economists compared the panic to the start of the 1929 Wall Street crash, warning that surging tariffs, inflation fears, and spiraling U.S. – China tensions could create a perfect storm for global markets.
The sell-off began early Friday after Trump posted a lengthy message on Truth Social announcing a ‘massive increase of tariffs on Chinese products’ to ‘financially counter’ Beijing’s new export controls on rare earth minerals – key materials used in AI, defense, and green technologies.
Bespoke Investment Group calculates that about $2 trillion in value from the U.S. stock market was erased by that single post. The S&P 500 lost 2.7% as the closing bell rang out at the New York Stock Exchange. It was its worst performance since early April, when the stock market was in the throes of a cascading sell-off from Trump’s so-called liberation day rollout of higher-than-expected duties for every country on the globe.