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The beatings keep coming for financial markets worldwide as worries worsen Monday about whether President Donald Trump’s trade war will torpedo the global economy.
The S&P 500 was down 3.8% in early trading, coming off its worst week since COVID began crashing the global economy in March 2020. The index, which sits at the heart of many investors’ 401(k) accounts, has lost more than 20% since setting a record less than two months ago.
If the S&P 500 finishes the day below that mark, it’s a big enough drop that Wall Street has a name for it. A “bear market” signifies a downturn that’s moved beyond a run-of-the-mill 10% drop, which happens every year or so, and has graduated into something much more vicious.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 3.59%, as of 9:35 a.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 4.3% lower.
The financial pain once again hammered investments around the world. Stocks in Hong Kong plunged 13.2% for their worst day since 1997.
A barrel of benchmark U.S. crude oil briefly dropped below $60 for the first time since 2021, hurt by worries that a global economy weakened by trade barriers will burn less fuel.
Bitcoin sank below $78,000, down from its record above $100,000 set in January, after holding steadier than other markets last week.