Trump tariffs live: FTSE opens sharply down after Asian markets plummet over trade fears

The FTSE 100 has opened down again after Asian markets plummeted as fears of a global trade war led investors to ramp up bets on the risk of recession. Monday's rout extends a two-day sell-off that wiped trillions of dollars from equity values after Donald Trump 's administration announced sweeping tariffs last week. The US president said overnight on Monday that he did not want global markets to fall, but also that he was not concerned about the major sell-off, adding: "Sometimes you have to take medicine to fix something.

" Global markets are braced for another dire day as the UK’s FTSE 100 index plunged more than 5 per cent within the first 10 minutes of trading. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index slumped more than 12 per cent in morning trade, which, if sustained, would make for the benchmark's largest daily fall since the 2008 global financial crisis. China 's CSI300 blue-chip index fell more than 5 per cent, while Japan's Nikkei 225 index plunged nearly 9 per cent, and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 dropped more than 6 per cent, with South Korea's Kospi losing 4.



4 per cent. UK prime minister Sir Keir Starmer said the “world as we knew it has gone” in the wake of Mr Trump’s tariffs ..