00:00Down, down, down.
00:02Markets across Asia plummeted on Monday as investors fear a global recession after U.S.
00:07President Donald Trump announced heavy tariffs on 180 countries last week.
00:12Among those hit the hardest, Asian countries.
00:16Taiwan's TAIX had its worst day on record, closing under 20,000 points after a nearly
00:2110 percent drop.
00:23Japan's Nikkei triggered a circuit breaker after dropping 8 percent in the morning but
00:27closed at 7 percent.
00:30And the Shanghai and Hong Kong indexes also dropped in their first day of trading since
00:33the tariffs announcement, with the Hang Seng plunging a whopping 13 percent after a long
00:38weekend.
00:39As investors panicked, Trump shrugged off concerns.
00:42Is there pain in the market at some point?
00:46You're unwilling to tolerate this idea of a Trump put.
00:48Is there a threshold?
00:50I think your question is so stupid.
00:53I don't want anything to go down.
00:55But sometimes you have to take medicine to fix something.
00:59Trump's aides said that over 50 countries have sought talks with the White House to
01:03eliminate the tariffs.
01:05Taiwan's government has also responded, seeking to appease the U.S. after Trump slapped a
01:1032 percent tariff on its exports.
01:12And its financial regulatory body also implemented temporary measures ahead of Monday's market
01:17opening, including massive limits on short selling, an attempt to keep traders from trying
01:22to profit from the uncertainty.
01:48Despite the sharp fall, people in Taipei were optimistic that the TAIX's historic plunge
02:00would just be a brief fluctuation after the tariffs.
02:18But based on the dismal market performance on Monday, it's clear that many investors
02:36are worried about the economy.
02:38And if the market continues sinking, their worst fears may become reality.
02:43Andy Hsu, Justin Wu, Leon Lien, Rick Lauer and Tiffany Wong in Taipei for Taiwan Plus.
Comments