European bourses are heading for a sharp decline at the start of trading on Monday after Trump insisted on continuing his trade war with tariffs.

Afrasionet - European bourses are heading for a sharp decline when trading began, on Monday, following a decline in Asian bourses, after US President Donald Trump insisted on continuing his trade war with tariffs on his country's partners.

Sharp decline in stock exchanges

About 40 minutes before the opening of European markets, futures for major indexes reflecting current trade before the opening fell 4.27% on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, 2.77% in Paris, 2.14% in London and 5.12% in Milan.

Other bourses also saw declines of 9.7% in Taipei, 8.7% in Shenzhen, 6.4% in Tokyo and 3% in Bombay.

Worst drop in more than 16 years in China

Hong Kong's stock market fell 12%, the worst drop in more than 16 years.

The Hang Seng index fell 12.4% to 20,021.32 points at 06:00 GMT, and the Chinese mainland composite index fell 7.7% to 3,083.80 points.

The Tokyo Stock Exchange closed down 7.82 percent, while the Seoul Stock Exchange closed 5.6 percent.

According to data from the London Stock Exchange Group, the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange extended losses, falling 4% in early trade, while the Dubai market fell 4.45%. 

The collapse is intensified as China, which on Friday after shutting down several Asian markets over the weekend retaliated  by imposing corresponding tariffs, raising the risk of an escalation in the trade war that could have a devastating impact on the global economy.

Tel Aviv loses $11 billion

The Tel Aviv stock exchange witnessed sharp declines against the backdrop of the "tariff crisis," according to Israeli media.

The Israeli newspaper "Maariv" said that the Tel Aviv stock exchange lost about 40 billion shekels (about 11 billion US dollars), as the leading indices in "Israel" fell about 4%, after Trump imposed customs duties on Israel by 17%.

The Israeli website Calcalist said the shekel continues to lose, with the dollar jumping to 3.77 and the euro to 4.14.

The website pointed out that the Bank of Israel will issue at 16:00 (Jerusalem time) (Monday) its decision on interest for the current month, noting that "the possibility of change is zero."

Reshaping the global economic system

Stephen Innes, an analyst at SBI Asset Management, told Reuters that "it's no longer just a trade dispute, it's a comprehensive reformulation of the global economic system" whose rules are being "dismantled."

US Treasury Secretary Scott Peacenet announced in a statement to NBC that "more than 50 countries have communicated with the government about reducing their customs barriers and duties and stopping their manipulation of exchange rates."

On business partners, Peaceant said: "We'll see if what they're offering is credible, because after 20, 30, 40 or 50 years of bad behavior, we can't start again from scratch."

Trump: The only way to bridge the deficit is tariffs

"We have a massive trade deficit with China, the European Union and many other countries," Trump wrote Sunday on his Truth Social platform, arguing that "the only way to solve this problem is tariffs that will generate tens of billions of dollars for the United States. That's great."

Global trade will tighten on Wednesday with additional tariffs imposed on a long list of countries that export more to the United States than they import from, notably 34 percent tariffs on China and 20 percent on the European Union.

As China retaliated by imposing additional tariffs of 34 percent on U.S. imports, Vice Commerce Minister Ling Jie told representatives of U.S. companies on Sunday that "China's countermeasures are not only aimed at protecting the legitimate rights and interests of companies, including U.S. companies (in China), but also at returning the United States to the right path to a multilateral trading system."

Jie vowed that his country would remain a "safe and promising land" for foreign investment.

Starmer: The world as we know it is over

Meanwhile, the Europeans doubled down on contacts over the weekend ahead of Monday's meeting in Luxembourg of EU foreign trade ministers to determine the "European response to the United States."

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Sunday: "The world as we knew it is over."