The U.S. stock market lost more in a single day than the entire cryptocurrency market is worth. On April 4, Wall Street recorded a staggering $3.25 trillion loss in market value, surpassing the $2.68 trillion market cap of all cryptocurrencies combined.
The loss followed mounting investor fears after President Donald Trump announced sweeping tariffs on April 2, triggering a global selloff. The scale of the selloff marked one of the sharpest market downturns in modern financial history.
Major indexes suffered across the board. The S&P 500 plunged 5.97%, erasing $5 trillion in just two trading sessions — the largest two-day loss on record, surpassing the pandemic-era crash of March 2020. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 2,231 points, or 5.5%, while the Nasdaq Composite slid 5.82%. The Russell 2000 Index dropped 4.37%.
As the U.S. stock market shed more than $9.6 trillion in value since Trump’s second inauguration in January, analysts pointed to deepening recession fears and global trade tensions as the primary drivers.
Tech Giants and Tariffs Trigger Collapse
Stocks most exposed to China led the losses. Tesla dropped 10.42%, Nvidia fell 7.36%, and Apple declined 7.29%. The chipmaker index sank 7.6%. Since the April 2 tariff announcement, American giants such as ConocoPhillips, Boeing, Starbucks, Qualcomm, Morgan Stanley, and Advanced Micro Devices have all lost more than 15% in value.
The Nasdaq has now entered a bear market, falling more than 20% from its December 2024 peak. The S&P 500’s 9% weekly drop ranks as its fifth-worst week in the last two decades. The Cboe Volatility Index closed at 45.31, its highest level since April 2020.
Trump’s executive order imposed a 10% baseline tariff on all imports and reciprocal tariffs on foreign partners. In response, China announced a 34% levy on American goods. The tariff war deepened concerns of a recession, prompting JPMorgan to raise the probability of a global downturn to 60% by year-end.
Despite the stock market turmoil, Bitcoin remained comparatively stable. Trading at $83,749, it was down just 0.16% over the past week. Market watchers took note. Commentator Dividend Hero posted, “Seeing it not tank while the stock market does is very interesting.” Technical trader Urkel said Bitcoin “doesn’t appear to care one bit about tariff wars.”
Even critics acknowledged the contrast. “While the entire stock market is tanking, Bitcoin is holding,” said trader Plan Markus.
Fed Signals No Immediate Rate Cuts
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Friday that the central bank has no plans for emergency interest rate cuts despite the rapid decline in equity markets. Powell warned the tariffs would cause “higher inflation and slower growth,” noting they were “larger than expected.”
Investment bank JP Morgan noted that recession risks were rising. Peter Cardillo of Spartan Capital Securities added, “(Powell’s) comments will be disappointing for those who believe that the Fed is going to step in anytime soon.”
As equities plunged, investors flocked to safe assets. The U.S. 10-year Treasury yield fell 12.2 basis points to 3.933%, nearing a six-month low. German 10-year bond yields dropped 17 basis points. Futures markets priced in 110 basis points of rate cuts by the Fed before year-end.
“A lot of investors I’ve talked to have just said in this kind of environment, let’s go to cash and just wait it out,” said Rick Meckler of Cherry Lane Investments.
Global recession fears also drove oil markets downward. Brent crude futures fell 6.5% to $65.58, and U.S. crude dropped 7.4% to $61.99 — the lowest prices since April 2021. China’s retaliatory tariffs and reduced demand outlook contributed to the plunge.
