A global stock sell off deepened on Monday in Asia as the region’s equity markets plunged to lows for the year, led by declines in listed banks.
The sell-off came after the US gave no indication over the weekend that it would soften its sweeping new tariff regime.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index led declines as it plunged 10.7 per cent, followed by a 9.7 per cent drop in Taiwan’s benchmark Taiex. Circuit breakers were triggered in Taiwan and South Korea as traders rushed to exit positions. The Chinese and Indian benchmark indices dropped 6.3 per cent and 4.2 per cent, respectively. Euro Stoxx 50 futures were down 4.1 per cent.
Banks were among the hardest-hit stocks. Japan’s largest lender, MUFG, fell by 10.8 per cent while HSBC plunged 14 per cent in Hong Kong. Singapore’s DBS dropped 9.9 per cent.
Government bonds posted modest gains as investors rotated into haven assets. Yields on the 10-year US Treasury fell 0.05 percentage points to 3.95 per cent. The 10-year Japanese government bond yield dropped 0.08 percentage points to 1.12 per cent. Bond yields move inversely to prices.
The yen rallied 0.7 per cent to trade at ¥145.9 a dollar. Gold and bitcoin both edged down.
