(Bloomberg) — A global stock selloff extended to a sixth day – the longest losing streak since September 2023 – as President Donald Trump boosted tariffs across the world and two days of solid megacap tech earnings failed to lift sentiment.
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The MSCI All Country World Index slid 0.2%. Contracts for the S&P 500 fell 0.2% and those for Europe declined 0.6%. Asian shares fell 0.7%, marking a sixth straight decline and the longest run of losses this year. Trump announced a slew of new tariffs, including a 10% global minimum and 15% or higher duties for countries with trade surpluses with the US.
The dollar was little changed on Friday after posting its first monthly gain since Trump took office in January. The Swiss franc edged lower after Trump put a 39% levy on the country’s exports to the US. The Taiwan dollar fell for a seventh day, the longest losing streak since June 2023, as the island got a 20% rate.
Trump’s latest tariffs boosted the average US rate on goods from across the world, as he forged ahead with his turbulent effort to reshape international commerce. Growing concerns that the levies could weigh on economic growth are starting to overshadow the AI-driven optimism that has buoyed megacap technology stocks.
“The announcement brings clarity on paper, but uncertainty in practice,” said Charu Chanana, chief investment strategist at Saxo Markets. “While markets now know the numbers, the lack of a clear framework behind these tariffs — and the seemingly arbitrary rates — only reinforces the sense of policy unpredictability. This makes it harder for businesses and investors to plan ahead.”
Trump’s baseline rates for many trading partners remain unchanged at 10% from the duties he imposed in April, easing the worst fears of investors after the president had previously said they could double. Yet, his move to raise tariffs on some Canadian goods to 35% threatens to inject fresh tensions into an already strained relationship.
The average US tariff rate will rise to 15.2% if rates are implemented as announced, according to Bloomberg Economics, up from 13.3% earlier — and significantly higher than the 2.3% in 2024 before Trump took office.
Markets Live Strategist Garfield Reynolds says:
The impact will hurt global trade and growth, and that’s likely to bring equities down from their recent peaks. Lingering uncertainty will also weigh on corporate decision-making, further chilling growth. While most of the levies just announced are lower than the extremes flagged on April 2, there’s a lack of rationale for many of the rates set that will add to the air of policy volatility.
Taiwan and the US haven’t yet held a summary meeting due to scheduling conflicts and the tariff rate of 20% is temporary, according to a statement from Taiwan’s cabinet.
Taiwan will work to reach an agreement with the US as soon as possible to seek a further reduction in reciprocal tariffs.
“Markets, which learned the hard way in April, have since then grown accustomed to tariffs being negotiated lower or them leading to trade deals and/or extensions, reducing initial concerns,” wrote Tony Sycamore, market strategist at IG Australia Pte. “The combination of these factors has kept market volatility low at this point of time.”
US stocks fell Thursday, erasing an initial advance on tech earnings that sent Microsoft Corp. above $4 trillion in market value. Apple Inc. shares rose in after-market trading following a sales beat, while those for Amazon.com Inc. fell as its outlook underwhelmed.
Elsewhere, South Korean shares tumbled the most since early April, as government plans to raise taxes on corporations and investors spurred caution in one of the world’s hottest stock markets.
Trump also sent letters to 17 of the largest pharmaceutical companies in a bid to lower prices, weakening their shares Thursday. Asian pharmaceutical companies that sell products in the US slid after Trump demanded drug companies lower US prices.
The market’s attention will soon turn to Friday’s jobs report for July, which is forecast to show companies are becoming more deliberate in their hiring. Employment likely moderated after a June increase, while the unemployment rate is seen ticking up to 4.2%.
“Given all the uncertainties, it makes a lot of sense for traders, for dealers to take some money off the table going into nonfarm payrolls today,” said Gareth Nicholson, CIO of Nomura International Wealth Management.
Corporate Highlights:
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Apple Inc. reported its fastest quarterly revenue growth in more than three years, easily topping Wall Street estimates.
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Amazon.com Inc. dropped in late trading after projecting weaker-than-expected operating income.
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Tokyo Electron Ltd. shares dived 18% — the most in nearly a year — after the chip tool maker slashed its full-year earnings outlook.
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Axa SA is close to acquiring Italian car insurer Prima Assicurazioni for about €1 billion ($1.1 billion) including debt.
Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
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S&P 500 futures fell 0.3% as of 6:51 a.m. London time
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Nasdaq 100 futures fell 0.3%
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The MSCI Asia Pacific Index fell 0.7%
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Japan’s Topix rose 0.2%
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Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.9%
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Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 0.5%
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The Shanghai Composite fell 0.4%
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Euro Stoxx 50 futures fell 0.6%
Currencies
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The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed
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The euro rose 0.1% to $1.1430
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The Japanese yen rose 0.2% to 150.45 per dollar
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The offshore yuan fell 0.1% to 7.2170 per dollar
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The British pound was little changed at $1.3203
Cryptocurrencies
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Bitcoin fell 0.8% to $115,543.62
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Ether fell 1.7% to $3,669.93
Bonds
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The yield on 10-year Treasuries was little changed at 4.37%
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Japan’s 10-year yield was unchanged at 1.550%
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Australia’s 10-year yield advanced five basis points to 4.31%
Commodities
This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.
–With assistance from Winnie Hsu and Joanne Wong.
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