Global stocks, dollar tumble as Trump sparks global trade war fears

The spectre of a global trade war sent world stocks tumbling towards a 2.5 percent weekly loss on Friday, and left bruised investors reaching for the traditional antidotes - government bonds, gold and the Japanese yen.

The falls came after U. S. President Donald Trump said the United States would impose tariffs of 25 percent on imported steel and 10 percent on aluminium, sparking concerns of retaliatory moves from major trade partners China, Europe and neighbouring Canada.

Europe's STOXX 600 index fell over 1.5 percent led by a near 5 percent slump from world's biggest steelmaker ArcelorMittal SA and 2.5 - 6 percent drops from the region's carmakers worried that they might be next.

Wall Street down even as US steel stocks jump on tariff expectations

Wall Street's main indexes fell on Thursday as industrial stocks, including heavyweights Boeing and Caterpillar, took a beating on fears that potential tariffs on steel imports could hit profits.

US President Donald Trump tweeted on Thursday that the US steel and aluminum industries need "free, fair and smart trade". CNBC reported that Trump will make an announcement on tariffs at 11 a.m. ET (1600 GMT).

Trump has vowed to take steps to crack down on imports of steel and aluminum and has been considering imposing hefty tariffs or quotas on imports of the metals from China and other countries under a national security law.
"I think the industrials are down as they use a lot of steel, and the uncertainty of what the tariff announcement could mean for them," said Ryan Detrick, Senior Market Strategist for LPL Financial.