Wall Street is bracing for a potential repeat of 1987’s brutal Black Monday today — and last week’s brutal sell-off could look tame by comparison.
Despite President Donald Trump claiming Sunday night that world leaders are ‘dying to make a deal,‘ US stock futures — along with major indices across Asia — tanked.
The S&P 500, Nasdaq, and Dow — the three main U.S. stock market indices — are on course to open Monday morning down as much as 6 percent. Analysts fear last week’s $6.6 trillion wipeout was just the beginning.
In early Monday morning trading in Asia — Sunday night US time – Japan’s Nikkei cratered as much as 8 percent. Australia was down 6 per cent, South Korea 5 per cent, Taiwan almost 10 percent, Singapore 8.5 percent, Hong Kong 10 per cent and China almost 5 percent.
UK eyes will be on the FTSE 100, which opens at 8am. It had its worst day of trading since the start of the pandemic on Friday, with banks among some of the firms to suffer the sharpest losses.
CNBC host and market analyst Jim Cramer warned that the US could be barreling toward another Black Monday.
The 1987 crash — a 22.6 percent drop in a single day — remains the worst in modern market history, far eclipsing the chaos of 2008 or even the Covid crash.
‘If the president doesn’t reach out and reward countries and companies that follow the rules, then the 1987 scenario… where we dropped for three days and then plunged 22 percent on Monday, becomes highly relevant,’ Cramer said during his show on Saturday.
The sell-off has already hammered everyday Americans’ 401(k)s and other retirement savings. Traders fear tariffs will cause a global recession.
On Sunday night, Trump denied he was intentionally engineering a market selloff and insisted he could not foresee market reactions, saying he would not make a deal with other countries unless trade deficits were solved.
‘Sometimes you have to take medicine to fix something,’ he said of the market pain.
President Donald Trump waves as he arrives at the White House on Marine One. Despite him claiming Sunday night that world leaders are ‘dying to make a deal, ‘ US stock futures as well as major indices in Asia tanked
President Donald Trump responded on Sunday to world leaders who begged him for a trade deal over the weekend as his lofty tariffs take effect
Futures for the S&P 500 on Sunday night were down as much as 4.2 percent, but they recovered later
Japan’s Nikkei slumped as much as 8 per cent in trading on Monday morning in Asia, which is Sunday night in the US
US stock futures — a reliable indicator of how the market will open on Monday — fluctuated overnight after opening at 6pm ET.
At 9.30pm, contracts for the S&P 500 lost 4.2 percent while that for the Dow Jones shed 3.5 percent and for the Nasdaq lost 5.3 percent. They were recovering later.
Each had already dropped at least 10 percent In the two days following Trump’s Wednesday announcement of sweeping tariffs on nearly 90 countries.
It was the worst two-day wipeout in US stock market history — with $6.6 trillion wiped off the value companies.
Trump’s 10 percent ‘baseline’ tariff came began Saturday, hitting all US imports except goods from Mexico and Canada. Come April 9, higher levies on goods from 57 larger trading partners – including the European Union.
Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday— as he returned from the LIV golf tournament at his course in Miami — Trump said that he had engaged with world leaders on the issue to seek resolution over the weekend, claiming ‘they’re dying to make a deal.
The president told reporters onboard Air Force One that he has spoken to European and Asian leaders since his worldwide tariffs went into effect
A trader is seen at the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) in Seoul, South Korea, April 7, 2025.
Australia’s SPX 200 was down 6 per cent when it opened on Monday morning
South Korea’s stock market also plunged
Trump boards Air Force One as he departs for Washington, at Palm Beach International Airport, West Palm Beach, Florida, on Sunday. He had been in Florida for the LIV golf tournament
The White House announced a baseline 10 percent tariff on all imports, effective April 5, with higher rates for countries imposing steeper duties on US goods on Wednesday, which Trump declared ‘Liberation Day’
The President, 78, said: ‘But I said we’re not going to have deficits with your country. We’re not going to do that because, to me, a deficit is a loss. We’re going to have surpluses, or we’re, at worst, going to be breaking even.’
Trump then went on to issue a warning to China, which he declared ‘would be the worst in the group because the deficit is so big and [it] would have been unsustainable.’
The commander-in-chief also shared a similar message on his Truth Social platform Sunday night.
‘We have massive Financial Deficits with China, the European Union and many others,’ he declared. ‘The only way this problem can be cured is with TARIFFS, which are now bringing Tens of Billions of Dollars into the USA.’
Some analysts believe the market may attempt a short-term bounce. Thursday and Friday’s steep slide pulled the S&P500 down more than 17 percent from its February 19 record close — bringing it closer to bear market territory, defined as a 20 percent drop
‘The bull market is dead,’ said Mark Malek, chief investment officer at Siebert Financial. ‘We might see some gains in the next few days, but for now they´re not going to be sustainable.’
Malek also pointed to poor timing — the tariff announcement came just as first-quarter earnings season was getting underway — adding to investor anxiety.
On Sunday morning talk shows, Trump’s top economic advisers sought to portray the tariffs as a savvy repositioning.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on NBC News’ ‘Meet the Press’ that there was ‘no reason’ to anticipate a recession.
‘Sometime this week it´s probably inevitable that we will have an up day,’ said Steve Sosnick, chief investment strategist at Interactive Brokers.
The Dow Jones tanked 508 points, a fall of nearly 23 percent, in a chaotic, daylong selling frenzy that ricocheted around the world
Long-time CNBC talking head Jim Cramer (pictured) warned that the economy could genuinely ‘crash’ if Donald Trump continues with his tariff program
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on NBC News’ ‘Meet the Press’ that there was ‘no reason’ to anticipate a recession.
‘Sometime this week it´s probably inevitable that we will have an up day,’ said Steve Sosnick, chief investment strategist at Interactive Brokers.
‘We may see a day this week where screens are green, but any lasting rally may not arrive for three or four weeks,’ said Alex Morris, chief investment officer at F/m Investments.
‘At that point, people will start saying we´ve taken enough air out of the balloon.’
Trump’s new tariffs will cause higher prices, job losses and lower growth, Jerome Powell warned Friday
The chair of the Federal Reserve, which sets interest rates for the US, issued the chilling outlook as he said the central bank faces tough decisions ahead as it navigates the economic fallout.
Wall Street analysts had expected the Fed to go beyond its planned two rate cuts for 2025 as recession fears grow over the new tariffs.
But Powell said the central bank won’t make any moves until it has a clearer sense of the fallout.
The Fed controls interest rates, which impact borrowing costs for families and businesses. It raises them to cool inflation and lowers them to spur growth.
Meanwhile, major global companies have changed plans amid Trump’s tariffs crippling the world markets.
On Friday, Nintendo delayed pre-orders of its new console at the 11th hour. Dodge-maker Stellantis announced abrupt layoffs Thursday.