Investing.com -- Canada’s main stock indexes continued plummeting in trading on Friday, its worst day in trading since March 2020. Investors have sold-off since the U.S. President Donald Trump’s announcement of a raft of new tariffs on Wednesday, with many seeing an all-out trade war and global recession on the horizon.
By the 4:00 ET close, S&P/TSX 60 Futures showed a decline of 65 points, or 4.4%. In Thursday’s trading, the S&P/TSX 60 index slid by 57.7 points or 3.8%.
The Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX Composite index had fallen 1,142 points, or 4.7%, its largest fall since March 2020, during the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. Thursday, the index finished down 971.4 points or 3.8%, which was at the time the largest drop for the index since June 2020.
The news of the day was China’s announcement of a 34% tariff on all U.S. imports, effective April 10.
Trump announced his broadest slate of tariffs to date on Wednesday, saying he would slap a baseline 10% duty on all foreign imports into the U.S. and impose greater levies on several longstanding trading partners in a bid to respond to perceived unfair trade practices.
The broad tariffs take effect on April 5, with the country-specific hikes starting April 9.
On Thursday, while the markets plunged in response to the tariff announcements, Trump doubled down, saying “I think it’s going very well.”
On Friday, he spoke of a "constructive call" with the General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam, To Lam.
Trump also urged Federal Reserve Bank Chairman Jerome Powell to cut interest rates, asking the Chairman to "stop playing politics." Powell spoke on Friday, stating that the economic impact of tariffs is "likely larger than expected" and signaling a cautious monetary policy.
Trump had previously rolled out a string of other tariffs that are now in effect, including a 25% import levy on goods from Mexico and Canada not deemed to be in compliance with the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement -- a trade accord signed during Trump’s first term. Energy products and potash received a 10% tariff. Neither country will be subject to any new tariffs beyond these.
A 25% tariff on Canadian steel and aluminum also remains in place.
In response, Canada Prime Minister Mark Carney declared on Thursday that Canada is implementing 25% tariffs on all vehicles and non-Canadian vehicle content imported from the U.S. that are not compliant with the CUSMA (USMCA) trade pact. Carney alleged that total funds raised from Canada’s tariffs could reach CAD$8 billion, and all funds will go to the autoworkers and companies affected.
U.S. stock continue fall
U.S. stock indexes continued their plunge on Friday, following a sharp drop on Thursday after President Trump announced his comprehensive trade tariffs. It has been the worst two-day decline for the bellwether S&P 500 index since March 2020.
By the 4:00 ET close, the NASDAQ Composite dropped 962.8 points or 5.8%, the S&P 500 sank by 322.5 points or 6%, and Dow Jones Industrial Average decreased by 2,231.1 points or 5.5%.
In Thursday’s trading, the S&P fell 274.4 points, or 4.8%. The Nasdaq slumped 1,050.4 points, or 6% on the day, suffering its worst loss since 2020. Additionally, the Dow declined by 1,679.5 points, or 4%.
In turn, JPMorgan (NYSE:JPM) has raised the probability of a global recession this year to 60%, driven by the economic shock stemming from a sweeping U.S. tariff hike announced on Liberation Day.
These tariff policies could see U.S. gross domestic product take a 10% hit in the second quarter of 2025, High Frequency Economics Chief Economist Carl Weinberg said in a note Thursday, potentially pushing the world’s largest economy into a recession after a predicted small contraction in the first quarter.
Weinberg estimated that tariffs would take $741 billion out of U.S. household real incomes or corporate profits, or more if fully accounting for all tariffs on aluminum, steel and non-exempt trade with Canada and Mexico.
Crude Oil WTI Futures prices dive
Oil prices slid sharply on Friday, with the tariffs raising concerns over the prospects for global fuel demand.
By 5:00 ET, Brent Oil Futures dropped by 5.9% to $65.98 a barrel, after suffering steep declines on Thursday.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures fell 6.9% to $62.34 a barrel.
Gold eases from record highs
Gold prices fell on Friday after hitting yet another record high on Thursday.
Trump’s tariffs sparked a severe risk-off move in broader financial markets, underpinning a flight to the perceived safety of assets like gold and the Japanese yen. Gold also benefited from a decline in the dollar.
As of 5:15 ET, XAU/USD was down 2.4% to $3,038.18/oz. Gold Futures fell 2.1%, pricing in at $3,056.95/oz.
In Thursday’s trading, Spot gold hit a record high of $3,168.04 an ounce, while gold futures expiring in June hit a peak of $3,201.60/oz.
(Scott Kanowsky also contributed to this article)
