BBC business reporter<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Stock markets in London, Paris and Berlin fell as trading began on Thursday after US President Donald Trump’s sweeping announcements on tariffs.<\/p>\n The UK’s FTSE 100 share index was down 1% while France’s Cac 40 fell 1.7%.<\/p>\n Earlier Asian markets had slid, while the price of gold, which is seen as a safer asset in times of turbulence, climbed to a record high.<\/p>\n Traders are concerned about the global economic impact of Trump’s tariffs, which they fear could stoke inflation and stall growth.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Markets across Asia had fallen sharply after Trump’s announcement, with the Nikkei in Japan closing down nearly 3% and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index 1.5% lower.<\/p>\n The price of gold hit a record high of $3,167.57 an ounce at one point on Thursday, before falling back.<\/p>\n Futures markets also suggest US shares will open lower when trading begins later. The S&P 500 is indicated to fall by 3% and the Dow Jones by 2.4%.<\/p>\n The decision by the US government to impose a combination of a 10% baseline levy and higher duties on a number of other trading partners reverses decades of liberalisation that shaped the global trade order.<\/p>\n “This is the worst-case scenario,” said Jay Hatfield, chief executive at Infrastructure Capital Advisors.<\/p>\n “Enough to potentially send the US into a recession,” he added, echoing nervous market sentiment.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n George Saravelos, head of FX at Deutsche Bank Research, said the new US trade tariffs were a “highly mechanical” reaction to trade deficits, rather than the “sophisticated assessment” the White House had promised.<\/p>\n Mr Saravelos warned the move “risks lowering the policy credibility of the [Trump] administration”.<\/p>\n “The market may question the extent to which a sufficiently structured planning process for major economic decisions is taking place. After all, this is the biggest trade policy shift from the US in a century,” he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Shares in sportswear firm Adidas fell more than 10%, while stocks in rival Puma tumbled more than 9% as key countries where their goods are made were hit with steep levies.<\/p>\n The new taxes include a 54% tariff on US imports from China and 46% on goods from Vietnam.<\/p>\n Among luxury goods firms, jewellery maker Pandora fell more than 12%, and LVMH (Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy) fell more than 3% after tariffs were imposed on the European Union and Switzerland.<\/p>\n There are worries that the tariffs could affect US consumer spending which is a massive part of the global economy – between 10% and 15%, according to some economists’ estimates.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n![\"EPA](\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/480\/cpsprodpb\/399c\/live\/c6565c30-1072-11f0-a161-1f18bc46c434.jpg.webp\")
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