Global stocks fall as Trump makes yet more trade threats against China
London — Global stocks fell for a second day on Friday as a report that US President Donald Trump is preparing to step up a trade war with Beijing dampened risk appetite and erased some of the gains made in a rally this week. Bloomberg News reported on Thursday that Trump is ready to impose tariffs on $200bn more in Chinese imports as soon as a public comment period on the plan ends next week. European shares tumbled for a second straight day, with the pan-European STOXX index opening more than 0.5% lower. Trade sparring between Trump and the EU weighed on car stocks, down 1.5% and the worst performing sector. In an interview with Bloomberg on Thursday, Trump also threatened to withdraw from the World Trade Organisation (WTO) if "they don’t shape up" — a move that would further undermine one of the foundations of the modern global trading system. Earlier in Asia, MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan dropped 0.6%, set for a monthly drop of 1.5%. The index has un...
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