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Stock markets globally have plummeted since US president Donald Trump unveiled sweeping tariffs last week, fuelling investor fears of a trade war that will tip the global economy into a recession.

Trillions have been wiped off global markets since Trump announced global tariffs on Wednesday, on what he dubbed "Liberation Day", with a 10% baseline levy which came into effect on Saturday. Trump also revealed higher custom tariffs on some countries, which are due to apply from 9 April.

On Thursday, stocks saw their worst one-day sell off since 2020, wiping out around $2.5tn (£1.95tn).

China announced on Friday it would be imposing a 34% tariff on imports of US products, in response to Trump's 34% levy on Chinese goods coming into the US.

Despite the turmoil in markets in the wake of his announcement, Trump showed no signs of backing down over the weekend. When asked on Sunday about the sharp falls in markets, Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One: "I don't want anything to go down, but sometimes you have to take medicine to fix something."

Read more: The FTSE 100 companies that could come out best after Trump's tariffs

The sell-off in stocks globally deepened on Monday, with Hong Kong's Hang Seng (^HSI) plunging 13%, which marked its biggest one-day loss since 1997. The UK's FTSE 100 (^FTSE) fell 3.6% and the pan-European STOXX 600 (^STOXX) declined 3.7%, while S&P 500 futures (ES=F) were down 1.8%.

Oil prices also fell in the wake of this latest escalation in trade tensions. Brent crude futures (BZ=F) were down a further 2.3% on Monday at $64.10 a barrel at the time of writing, with concerns of a tariff-induced global recession would also weigh on fuel demand.

Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: "The big flight to cash continues as investors seek a shelter for their money amid the tariff storm.

"A sea of red on markets will inevitably be troubling for investors," she said. "It is however, important not to panic and look at long-term investment horizons. History has shown that markets do recover from times of crisis and high uncertainty. It is always worth keeping an eye on an investment portfolio and ensure that you are well diversified across a mix of geographies and asset classes to spread the risk. Drip feeding an investment portfolio can also help ride out the volatility."

Have you made any changes to your investment portfolio amid this volatility? Vote in our poll below.

Yahoo UK's poll of the week lets you vote and indicate your strength of feeling on one of the week's hot topics. After the poll closes, we'll publish and analyse the results each Friday, giving readers the chance to see how polarising a topic has become and if their view chimes with other Yahoo UK readers.

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