Gold fell more than 3 percent on Friday, erasing gains from earlier in the week, as investors sold off bullion to cover their losses from a wider market meltdown as an intensifying trade war sparked concerns of a global recession.

Donald Trump’s second trade war is a battle of one against all. Reciprocal tariffs announced on Wednesday by the White House hit China with a hike of 34 percentage points, taking the fresh levies on exports from the People’s Republic up 54 percentage points in the 10 weeks since the US president took office.

US President Donald Trump has slapped punishing new tariffs on imports of Chinese goods, deepening a trade war between the world’s two largest economies.

US President Donald Trump was poised to unveil sweeping new “Liberation Day” tariffs yesterday, but kept the world guessing until the last minute about the scope of an onslaught that could spark a global trade war.

Gold prices surged to a record high on Friday, as investors flocked to the safe-haven asset amid fears of a global trade war triggered by US President Donald Trump’s latest tariffs.

The United States has not paid its 2024 dues to the World Trade Organization and is therefore now deemed to be in “arrears”, the WTO’s spokesman said Friday.

US President Donald Trump’s tariff plans could increase inflation by as much as 1.2 percentage points if they are fully implemented, a senior Federal Reserve official said Wednesday.

World powers on Thursday blasted US President Donald Trump’s steep tariffs on imports of vehicles and car parts, vowing retaliation as a widening trade war intensifies.

The United States added dozens of entities to a trade blacklist Tuesday, its Commerce Department said, in part to disrupt Beijing’s artificial intelligence and advanced computing capabilities.

Chinese carmaker BYD on Thursday vowed to conquer Europe with a new compact electric model and super-fast charging capability to rival continental brands.

Artificial intelligence (AI) startup Perplexity on Friday expressed its interest in buying TikTok, which faces a deadline to divest from its Chinese owner or be banned in the United States.

Major tech firms are pushing the administration of President Donald Trump to loosen rules on building artificial intelligence, arguing it is the only way to maintain a US edge and compete with China.

Japanese inflation eased in February, government data showed Friday, with prices excluding fresh food rising 3.0 percent year-on-year in the world’s fourth-largest economy.

Taiwanese tech giant Foxconn reported on Friday a lower-than-expected net profit for 2024 as consumer electronic gadgets underperformed, although demand for its artificial intelligence servers remained robust.

Vietnamese and US companies have signed more than $4 billion in deals, a petrochemical giant said Friday, as anxiety mounts in Hanoi over potential tariffs under US President Donald Trump’s administration.

Recessions come with costs. Business profits fall, as do stock prices, which can then amplify the impact as investors reduce their own consumption.

Trump's hyper-focus on tariffs has rattled investor, consumer and business confidence and raised recession fears.

The EU executive said, however, that it remained open to negotiations and considered higher tariffs in no one's interest.

The European Commission said Wednesday it would impose "a series of countermeasures" from April 1 in response to the "unjustified trade restrictions" from the United States.

All eyes will also be on possible stimulus to boost domestic demand, sorely needed to counter a potential drop in tariff-sensitive exports.