European Stocks Sink by Most Since August on Tariff Shock

WATCH: European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen warned that US actions would deal a blow to the global economy and urged further trade negotiations.Source: Bloomberg

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By Julien Ponthus, Levin Stamm, and Sagarika Jaisinghani

April 2, 2025 at 8:57 PM EDT

Updated on

April 3, 2025 at 11:50 AM EDT

European stocks suffered their worst day in eight months after US President Donald Trump announced the steepest tariffs in a century, including a 20% rate for the European Union.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index sank 2.6% at the close. The major regional stock exchanges were all in the red, with France’s CAC 40 down 3.3%, Germany’s DAX slipping 3% and Denmark’s OMXC25 Index dropping 2.4% into a bear market.