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Germany's incoming chancellor, Friedrich Merz, warns that the stock market slumps could get worse.

"The situation on the international equity and bond markets is dramatic and threatens to deteriorate further," he tells the news agency Reuters.

Along with other European Union countries, Germany faces 25% tariffs on steel, aluminium and cars going into the US, as well as "reciprocal" tariffs on other goods of 20%.

The chancellor-in-waiting says it is "more urgent than ever" for Germany to find ways to compete internationally.

Faisal Islam
Economics editor

These stock market falls are pretty shocking to see.

As a reminder, a stock market is the best guess of what every company in the world is worth and what their future profits will be.

What we’re seeing in the last few hours is the idea that the rules underpinning everything we know about the economy are changing - and those companies around the world are going to make less profit because of Trump’s tariffs.

There were two specific assumptions:

• That Trump would react to the markets, and that he’d adjust his policy accordingly
• That he was using these tariffs as a form of negotiation - so you start high, and negotiate down

As a result of Trump’s comments over the weekend, and those he made on Air Force One last night, both those assumptions are now up for question.

And the markets are reacting in a really quite violent way.

Image source, Getty Images

The EU's trade ministers will be meeting in Luxembourg today. It's their first meeting since Donald Trump's tariffs announcement last week.

Ahead of the meeting, Maros Sefcovic, the EU's commissioner for trade and economic security, says discussion will focus on how to position Europe in what he describes as "the paradigm shift of the global trading system".

Meanwhile, Swedish Trade Minister Benjamin Dousa, says all options are on the table for countermeasures by the EU.

After a chaotic start to the trading day, stock markets in Europe have stabilised slightly - although they are still showing huge falls.

In London, the FTSE 100 index is down 4.9% and currently stands at 7,659.42 - which is nearly 400 points lower on the day.

Germany's Dax index plunged 10% in the first few minutes of the day, but has now recovered some ground and is down 5.9%. France's Cac 40 has fallen 5.7%.

Dharshini David
Deputy economics editor

It maybe hard to see any bright spots amid the market turmoil. But there’s a glimmer of hope for British businesses and households.

As expectations grow that UK growth will be hit by trade disruption here and abroad, financial markets are actually bracing for more rate cuts from the Bank of England this year.

The movement in bond markets perhaps points to three more cuts this year. Of course, it is speculative and subject to change but these shifts in markets, if sustained, ultimately shape rates for fixed-rate mortgage deals.

They also influence expectations for the government borrowing costs.

So if sustained, this could help ease some of the constraints the chancellor faces when trying to meet her rules on the public finances.

As we endure this wild ride, there's a hint of relief for millions of borrowers.

The TAIEX index in Taipei has suffered its biggest drop on record, dropping 9.7%, AFP reports.

Earlier, we reported that Hong Kong's exchange closed after its worst day in 28 years, with a loss of 13.22%.

Both the Taiwan and Hong Kong markets were closed for a public holiday on Friday.

Peter Hoskins
Business reporter, BBC News Singapore

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Asian stock markets have plummeted as the shockwaves from US President Donald Trump's tariffs continue to reverberate around the world.

Major indexes from Shanghai to Tokyo and Sydney to Hong Kong plunged on Monday. "It's a bloodbath," one analyst told the BBC.

As a region that manufactures so many of the goods sold globally, Asian countries and territories are being hit directly by the tariffs.

They are also particularly sensitive to the impact of fears that a global trade war could trigger a slowdown or even a recession in the world's biggest economy.

• Read more: Why was there a 'bloodbath' on Asian markets?

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index has now ended 13.22% down. It has been dropping across the day since markets opened.

This is the biggest drop since the 1997 Asian financial crisis, AFP reports.

Image source, Getty Images

While all the focus has been on the dramatic stock market falls, the prices of commodities such as oil and copper have also been sinking.

Why are they falling? Well demand for things like oil and copper tends to increase when the global economy is doing well, as more oil is needed to provide energy and copper is a key component for many industries.

However, the worry is now that the US tariffs will slow global economic growth, or maybe even trigger a recession. This will reduce demand for these commodities, hence the recent fall in their prices.

The price of benchmark Brent crude oil fell about 10% last week, and it’s dropped a further 4% this morning to $63.04 a barrel. The price of copper fell about 6% in early trade on Monday before recovering some ground.

In Asia, America's friends are suffering almost as much as Chinapublished at 09:07 British Summer Time

09:07 BST

Mariko Oi
Asia Business Correspondent

Image source, EPA

China may have been the key target of Donald Trump’s latest tariffs, but judging from the market reaction, America’s friends – such as Japan, South Korea and Australia – are suffering almost as badly as Beijing.

Since last Thursday, shares in carmakers such as Toyota, Honda and Nissan have been falling sharply due to the 25% levy on all imported cars into the US.

Japan’s banking shares are also hit, as economists say it is highly unlikely for the country’s central bank to be able to raise the cost of borrowing due to the significant impact on Asia’s second biggest economy.

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has repeatedly emphasised that Japan is the biggest foreign direct investor in the US and therefore should be able to enjoy an exemption from some of the tariffs.

But so far, Tokyo’s negotiations with Washington have not been successful.

Some fear a 'Liz Truss moment' for Donald Trumppublished at 08:46 British Summer Time

08:46 BST

Simon Jack
Business editor

As we witness what many are describing as a bloodbath in world stock markets, there are some particularly gory casualties.

Shares in UK-headquartered but internationally exposed banks have seen some of the sharpest falls of all.

HSBC and Standard Chartered, which are at the intersection of trade between east and west, have been hammered with shares in both down over 10% at one time overnight - before recovering some of their losses when London markets opened.

Banks like Lloyds and NatWest are often seen as proxies for the prospects for the UK economy and are also down over 5% this morning - signalling the increasing chances the economic shock unveiled by Donald Trump could usher in a recession.

Meanwhile, key commodities like copper and oil are also flashing red on fears for a global economic slowdown.

More than one market commentator tells me that Donald Trump is having his Liz Truss moment - when markets lose confidence in the direction and competence of economic policy makers.

When that applies to the world's biggest economy and biggest customer on the planet, the fear is universal.

European markets have seen some significant moves this morning with indices opening lower, then regaining some ground.

The German DAX opened down 10% before recovering a little to be down 7%.

The French CAC is down 6% and the FTSE is currently 5.2% lower.

For specific companies - in London, the owner of British Airways, IAG Group, is down 11%, while Standard Chartered is down 8%.

Shares in defence companies and banks have seen some of the biggest falls so far this morning in Europe.

In Germany, tank-maker Rheinmetall plunged nearly 24%, while in the UK shares in Rolls-Royce sank 12%.

Defence stocks had jumped earlier this year on the prospects of higher spending by European governments.

Among the banks, shares in Barclays fell 8% while NatWest dropped 7%.

In Germany, Commerzbank and Deutsche Bank were both down by about 10%.

Hardly any firms are escaping the sell-off. Every single one of the companies in the UK's FTSE 100 index has seen its share price fall this morning.

It's been a hectic morning in Europe as share prices tumble.

On the other side of the world, Australia's main ASX 200 closed at its lowest close since late 2023 - adding to losses triggered by Donald Trump's tariff announcement last week.

The US imposed 10% tariffs on Australian goods - which is lower than many other countries are facing, including the EU and China.

Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers said: "When confidence craters, markets crash and that's what we've seen as a result of the US administration's self-defeating tariffs policy."

We're seeing some massive falls on European stock markets.

There have been some big swings in the first few minutes of trading - but as things stand the FTSE 100 index is down nearly 6%.

Germany's Dax index - which sank 10% at one point - is down 7.6%, while France's Cac 40 index is 7% lower.

Germany's Dax share index has plunged nearly 10% at the start of trade, while the UK's FTSE 100 is now down nearly 6%.

Trading started on the London Stock Exchange a few moments ago and the FTSE 100 index has opened down 2.4%.

Fear rather than fundamentals is largely driving share slumpspublished at 07:56 British Summer Time

07:56 BST

Dharshini David
Deputy economics editor

Wall Street is not Main Street, and shifts in markets do not, for the main part, reflect what’s happening in the real world at that moment.

But clouds are gathering over economic prospects - fast - as the impact of President Trump’s universal tariffs filter through the real world.

Movement of stocks, oil prices, and so on, are largely driven by sentiment and speculation, predictions of what may happen.

Currently, it is fear rather than fundamentals that are largely driving share prices - fears of a recession later in this year or next. The markets have plunged as traders have adjusted expectations - reality hitting that these tariffs may not be temporary - and the risk of more countries acting in kind.

It’s not just investors but world leaders gambling this week, deliberating whether restraint or retaliate is the best policy. Their actions will shape global growth and inflation.

Some economists put the US’s chances of entering recession as close to 50-50, and some reckon the global economy may face a similar risk.

Between them, China and America make close to half of global goods; the shockwaves will be felt far from their shores. But remember, even as markets glow red, the economic impact remains very uncertain.

All eyes will be on the European markets when trading starts at 08:00. The indications are they will open sharply lower, following the slump we’ve already seen in Asia.

Just a reminder that on Friday, the UK’s benchmark FTSE 100 share index sank nearly 5% - its worst day of trading since the start of the Covid pandemic in early 2020.

Banking shares saw some of the biggest losses on Friday and bank shares have seen hefty falls already in Asia today.

The FTSE 100 was down 7% over the week as a whole, and similar falls were seen on the German and French markets.

Image source, Getty Images

Stock markets in Asia continue to fall on Monday - even since our last update less than an hour ago.

Hang Seng - Hong Kong's stock market index - is now down 12.9% today. On mainland China, the Shanghai Composite is down more than 8%.

In Hong Kong and Shanghai, it's the first day of trading since Thursday, having been closed on Friday for a public holiday.