The panic caused by Donald Trump's tariff war continued to be reflected in global stock markets, which continued to decline at the start of this week. European stock markets followed the downward trajectory of their Asian peers, with the German DAX index shrinking by 10 percent before recovering somewhat to 7 percent.
The main index in Paris fell by 5.9 percent and the British by almost 6 percent. Shares of defense companies and banks suffered the biggest losses on Monday morning in Europe.
In Germany, tank manufacturer Rheinmetall fell by almost 24 percent, while in the UK, shares of Rolls-Royce shrank by 12 percent.
Defense-related stocks had risen earlier in the year on the prospect of larger spending by European governments.
Among banks, the British Barclays and the Germans Commerzbank and Deutsche Bank recorded significant losses.
US stocks also signaled another weak week ahead, with the Nasdaq down 5.3 percent. On Friday, US markets had their worst day since the Covid-19 crisis. Despite the dramatic market reaction, Trump defended his decision and compared the tariffs to drugs.
"I can't tell you what's going to happen to the market. But I can tell you that our country has become stronger, and it's going to be a country like no other. It's going to be the most dominant economically. I don't want to see a market crash, but sometimes you have to take medicine to fix something."
Asian stocks also opened lower again this week, deepening the crisis after China decided to retaliate against Donald Trump's additional 34 percent tariff. Oil prices were also in the red, with the global benchmark price down 3.5 percent on Monday, or $63.3 per barrel. (A2 Televizion)
A2 CNN Livestream
MUND TE LEXONI GJITHASHTU
