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Volatile Markets & Tariff Turmoil: Weekly Trade War Recap (April 7–12, 2025)

A detailed overview of the week's historic market swings, policy shifts, and global reactions amid escalating U.S.-China trade tensions and tariff developments.

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Listing Track
April 12, 2025

Trade War - Weekly Recap (April 7–12, 2025)

Summary

This week was marked by significant market volatility, driven by escalating U.S.-China trade tensions and President Trump's shifting tariff policies. Initially, markets reacted negatively as IPO activities stalled, notably impacting companies like StubHub, Klarna, and eToro. Corporate leaders, notably Citadel CEO Ken Griffin and Howard Marks, openly criticized the tariffs as a major policy mistake.

Midweek brought a dramatic reversal, triggered by Trump’s announcement of a 90-day tariff pause (excluding China), prompting historic daily point gains for both the S&P 500 (+9.52%) and Nasdaq Composite (+12.16%)—coming immediately after the Nasdaq's worst weekly drop (-10.02%) since the 2020 Covid crash. Despite the brief optimism, market concerns persisted, underscored by fears of recession and stagflation, reflected in sharply rising Treasury yields—recording their largest weekly increase (+12.81%) since 2001. Companies like Apple expedited iPhone shipments from India to avoid tariff impacts, while European firms swiftly adapted production strategies in response to trade uncertainties.

Compared to the previous week, markets showed signs of recovery but remained incredibly volatile, with a slew of trading records set:

  • S&P 500: +5.70% (compared to last week's -9.08%)

  • Nasdaq Composite: +7.29% (last week: -10.02%)

  • Dow Jones Industrial Average: +4.95% (last week: -7.86%)

  • VIX: -17.11% (last week: +109.28%)

  • 10-Year Treasury Yield (US 10Y): increased significantly to 4.49% (+12.81% weekly from 3.98%)

Detailed Daily Breakdown

(Note: Developments listed each day may reference earlier events rather than events that occurred specifically on that day.)

Monday, April 7

Developments: IPO activities halted for companies like StubHub, Klarna, and eToro due to volatility. (Bloomberg)

Market Overview: Relatively stable with minor adjustments after sharp declines the prior week.

  • S&P 500: +0.23%

  • Nasdaq: -0.10% (2nd largest intraday point swing)

  • Dow Jones: +0.91% (3rd largest intraday point gain)

  • VIX: -3.69%

  • US 10Y: 4.16% (-4.52%)

Tuesday, April 8

Developments:

  • Coverage on last week's market collapse:

    • Short sellers gain $127 billion amid market declines following tariff announcements. (Reuters)

    • Leveraged ETFs lose a record $25.7 billion. (FT)

  • Earnings forecasts sharply downgraded for S&P 500 amid recession fears. (Bloomberg)

  • Ken Griffin publicly criticizes tariffs, aligning with broader executive sentiment. (WSJ)

  • China’s SOEs, including Sinopec, increase share buybacks. (Reuters)

  • Majority of U.S. firms maintain or increase China engagements despite rising tariffs. (WSJ)

  • Japan rejects using U.S. Treasury holdings as tariff leverage. (Reuters)

  • Silicon Valley IPO pipeline disrupted, raising venture capital liquidity risks. (Bloomberg)

Market Overview: Further declines amid continued tariff uncertainty.

  • S&P 500: -1.57%

  • Nasdaq: -2.15% (3rd largest intraday point swing)

  • Dow Jones: -0.84% (2nd largest intraday point loss, 3rd largest intraday point swing)

  • VIX: +11.39%

  • US 10Y: 4.26% (+2.40%)

Wednesday, April 9

Developments:

  • Trump’s 90-day tariff pause leads to Nasdaq’s historic single-day gain. (WSJ, Bloomberg)

  • Minutes from last month's Fed meeting showed that the Fed expresses stagflation concerns due to sustained tariffs. (Bloomberg)

Market Overview: Markets surge following Trump's tariff pause announcement.

  • S&P 500: +9.52% (largest daily points gain, 8th largest daily percentage gain)

  • Nasdaq: +12.16% (largest daily point gain, 2nd largest daily percentage gain)

  • Dow Jones: +7.87% (largest intraday point gain)

  • VIX: -35.75%

  • US 10Y: 4.40% (+3.29%)

Thursday, April 10

Developments:

  • Congressional Democrats question possible insider trading following Trump’s timely stock market advice. (NBC)

  • Apple airlifts 1.5 million iPhones from India to avoid tariffs. (Reuters)

  • Australia declines China's offer for joint tariff response. (Reuters)

  • Treasury yields decline after tariff pause eases anxiety. (CNBC)

  • Chinese Amazon sellers raise prices or exit U.S. markets due to 125% tariff. (Reuters)

  • Howard Marks warns tariffs could severely damage the U.S. economy. (Bloomberg)

  • Record outflows from high-yield bonds and leveraged loans amid recession fears. (FT)

Market Overview: Renewed volatility with ongoing tariff concerns.

  • S&P 500: -3.46%

  • Nasdaq: -4.31%

  • Dow Jones: -2.50%

  • VIX: +21.12%,

  • US 10Y: 4.39% (-0.23%)

Friday, April 11

Developments:

  • China raises tariffs on U.S. goods from 84% to 125%, labeling U.S. actions "economic bullying." (AP)

  • Ansys-Synopsys acquisition faces regulatory delay risks amid tensions. (Bloomberg)

  • Banks increase loan-loss provisions due to economic uncertainty. (Bloomberg)

  • Significant outflows from U.S. bond funds amid recession fears. (Reuters)

  • Treasury yields rose sharply amid a steep equity sell-off — an atypical divergence that points to eroding confidence in U.S. government debt as a safe haven. The 10-year yield jumped 50 basis points to 4.492%, its largest weekly increase since November 2001. (WSJ)

Market Overview: Moderate recovery, ending the week cautiously optimistic.

  • S&P 500: +1.81%

  • Nasdaq: +2.06%

  • Dow Jones: +1.56%

  • VIX: -7.76%

  • US 10Y: 4.49% (+2.28%)

Saturday, April 12

Developments:

  • Trump exempts key consumer electronics from tariffs. (Bloomberg)

  • Fed highlights risks of entrenched inflation expectations. (Bloomberg)

  • European firms are rushing to execute new strategies to mitigate tariff impacts. (Bloomberg)

  • Trump administration faces challenges in negotiating 90 trade deals in 90 days. (Reuters)

For live updates beyond this weekly recap, check out our Tariff Tracker. It features a real-time news feed including curated coverage, a table of most at-risk US companies with filters by sector and sourcing country, plus earnings and deal flow for the impacted companies.

Want to go broader? ListingTrack.io is a market intelligence platform that tracks the events and narratives moving the market, from IPOs and other public listings, to public M&A and major private deals. We also cover fast-moving themes like AI, nuclear, and next-gen defense, as well as sector-focused activity through tools like our Logistics tracker—and much more.

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Thanks for reading.

Nick

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