Shares in Britain's leading banks plummeted in early trading on Thursday following President Trump's tariff announcement, which sent shockwaves through the London stock market.
Europe's largest bank, HSBC, saw its shares tumble by over 5%, with Barclays experiencing a fall of more than 4%, as reported by .
Standard Chartered, a member of the FTSE 100 index, suffered the brunt of the sell-off, with its share price dropping over 7%.
READ MORE: {}
The FTSE 100 index itself retreated beyond 1% as the markets opened, reacting to Trump's decision to impose a 10% tariff on 海角视频 imports to the USA.
Dan Coatsworth, an investment analyst at AJ Bell, commented to City AM: "With so much uncertainty around the global economy as a result of Liberation Day, it seems as if fewer investors want to own banks despite many paying generous dividends which can provide comfort during rocky market conditions."
He remarked that banking is inherently tied to economic fortunes, contributing to the sector's vulnerability in the worldwide market downturn: "Banking is an economically sensitive industry, which explains why shares in the sector have been caught up in the global market sell-off."
Coatsworth pointed out the specific challenges for HSBC and Standard Chartered: "Trump's tariffs are particularly punishing for various parts of Asia and that puts HSBC and Standard Chartered in the firing line given their major reliance on that part of the world."
He continued to illustrate the broader implications: "Businesses will be spooked by tariffs and that could lead to reduced investment, which in turns suggests less demand to borrow from banks or for advisory services on M&A activity."
Most Read
Coatsworth also highlighted Brexit's impact: "The same applies to Europe and the US which are key places where Barclays does business."
Barclays, HSBC and Standard Chartered all have significant operations beyond the 海角视频, including in the US and Asia.
A deceleration in global trade could result in reduced revenue for these banks due to a decreased demand for their services in facilitating international partnerships through trade finance and other financial services.
The tariffs imposed on the 海角视频 – coupled with the higher 20 per cent rate for the European Union and 34 per cent for China – could also cause disruptions among traders in international supply chains, potentially impacting the financial health of the banks' clients.