Australian shares drop 4% in worst session since pandemic on Trump tariff shock

Australian shares plunged on Monday, in their worst session since the pandemic began as sweeping US tariffs under President Donald Trump fuelled recession fears and wiped-out billions from stock market value.

The SP/ASX 200 index finished 4.2 per cent lower at 7,343.30 points, after plummeting as much as 6.5 per cent in early trading hours.

Miners, heavily exposed to Chinese commodity demand, slumped to a near three-year low, with BHP, Rio Tinto, and Fortescue dropping between 3 per cent and 6 per cent.

Banks hit eight-month lows on Monday, with the Big Four — trading at steep premiums — shedding over $18 billion in market value. Top lender Commonwealth Bank of Australia lost 6 per cent in its worst session in more than three years.

Around $69 billion in value was wiped off the benchmark on the day, as per Reuters calculation based on LSEG data. It is down nearly 15 per cent since the mid-February all-time high.

Global markets extended their slide into the new week, as the White House showed no sign of retreating from unexpectedly harsh tariff plans unveiled last Wednesday, triggering a broad-based asset selloff.

Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers said the resource-rich country would manage the direct impact of US tariffs, but growth would take a hit as the US and Chinese economies slow. China is Australia's biggest trading partner. "Uncertainty is high as markets recalibrate for the economic impact of the tariffs," said Kerry Craig, Global Market Strategist at J.P. Morgan Asset Management.

Energy stocks plumbed 7 per cent to their lowest since early November 2020. Heavyweights Woodside Energy and Santos dropped around 6 per cent and 10 per cent, respectively.

Tech stocks fell 2.3 per cent, while discretionary consumer stocks lost 4.8 per cent. Healthcare sector also lost more than 4 per cent.

New Zealand's benchmark shed 3.7 per cent to finish at 11,775.88 points, its lowest since early July last year.

($1 = 1.6603 Australian dollars)