Wall Street’s premier stock market has erased its gains since Donald Trump’s November election after the U.S. imposed tariffs on its closest allies and China. The S&P 500 has seen a $3.4 trillion reduction in company valuations, marking a 5.6% drop from its record high last month.
The index has fallen 1.5% to 5,764.38—lower than its levels before Trump’s election on November 5—effectively undoing the so-called Trump trades that had driven market gains.
Since February 19, the S&P 500 has lost a staggering $3.3 trillion, averaging $330 billion per trading day over the past 10 days.
This development comes amid a global stock market selloff, with major indexes in Germany and Italy dropping by more than 3%, and those in France and Paris falling over 2%. Even the FTSE 100, typically viewed as more insulated from U.S. trade threats, plunged by over 1% amid fears that the tariffs could trigger a global economic downturn.
On a day marked by significant market volatility, the price of Brent crude oil slipped below $70 per barrel amid concerns that the tariff measures could weaken demand, even as the OPEC+ cartel pledged to boost production.
The U.S. implemented a 25% tariff on imports from its closest allies, Mexico and Canada, overnight, along with an additional 10% levy on China. In response, Canada and China announced retaliatory measures, while Mexico indicated that it would unveil its counter-response on Sunday.
Deutsche Bank cautioned that this turmoil might even undermine the U.S. dollar’s reputation as a safe-haven asset for global investors. The dollar fell against both the pound and the euro, despite the inflationary risks posed by the tariffs.
George Saravelos, Deutsche Bank’s global head of FX research, noted, “We do not write this lightly. But the speed and scale of global shifts is so rapid that this needs to be acknowledged as a possibility.”
