Global markets, US futures crash

U.S. President Donald Trump unveiled his tariff plan for several U.S. trade partners on April 2, touted as 'Liberation Day', which caused a sharp-sell off across global markets. Investor sentiment soured, with Wall Street cracking over five percent in after-hours trading.

While Wall Street closed the session in the green, after Trump's reciprocal tariffs were announced, the S&P 500 futures crashed 3.9 percent, and futures of Nasdaq-100 tanked 4.7 percent. Dow Futures plummeted over 1,000 points, falling 2.4 percent. Small-cap index Russell 2000 futures dropped over 4.9 percent, edging the index closer to bear-market territory.

Tech stocks also took a hit in after-hours trading, with Tesla and Palantir dropping about 8 percent, Apple and Amazon slipping 7 percent, and Nvidia losing nearly 6 percent.

Beyond tech, Nike and Walmart both fell 7 percent, while Deckers Outdoor, the company behind UGG and Hoka, plunged 12 percent.

Further, the US dollar fell half a percent in trade to hover around the 103.8 level, while in the commodities markets, gold prices surged to lifetime highs as investors flocked to the safe-haven asset.

Fears of a global trade war rippled through international stock exchanges, as Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 and South Korea's KOSPI and Kosdaq indices crashed over four percent in the early session.

Further, global currencies such as the Thai baht and Chinese yuan, as the impact of the tariffs is likely to pressure domestic growth and fuel inflation.

GIFT Nifty also sank over one percent at 5.55 am, to quote 23,133.00, which indicates a sour started for the domestic frontlines, as U.S. will now impose a "discounted" broad-based tariff of 26 percent on India.

The is half of 52 percent that India supposedly charges U.S., including currency manipulation and trade barriers. Further, the White House announced, that these tariffs are over a 10 percent base import duty slapped on all goods entering the United States of America.

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