Trump tariffs trigger massive crypto losses and market panic worldwide.
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Following the latest tariff enacted by Donald Trump on Chinese goods, the global crypto market is experiencing what is being described as the largest single-day crash in history.
According to reports by crypto information and trading platform Coinglass, the announcement of the tariff has triggered liquidations for more than 1.5 million crypto traders in the past 24 hours.
White House retaliation triggers worldwide crypto crash
China’s Ministry of Commerce had announced on Thursday, October 9 that overseas exporters will need to acquire an export license for items that either contain more than 0.1 per cent of rare earth minerals from China, or are manufactured using rare earth mineral extraction or refining technology. Chinese officials stated that this was to “safeguard national security and interests.”
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Following this statement, the White House announced a 100 per cent tariff on all Chinese goods, set to take effect on November 1 or before, in retaliation for the Chinese capital of Beijing’s new export controls on the minerals. Trump called this action an “extremely hostile letter to the world,” and said the export controls would affect virtually every product they make.
New tariff by November 1, unless China reconsiders
Wrote Donald Trump, “Based on the fact that China has taken this unprecedented position, and speaking only for the U.S.A., and not other Nations who were similarly threatened, starting November 1st, 2025 (or sooner, depending on any further actions or changes taken by China), the United States of America will impose a Tariff of 100% on China, over and above any Tariff that they are currently paying.”
“It is impossible to believe that China would have taken such an action, but they have, and the rest is History. Thank you for your attention to this matter!” continued Trump.
Major crypto, stock market downward spiral
As a result, the announcement of the new tariffs sent the crypto market into a downward spiral on Saturday, October 11, the largest single-day wipeout ever recorded for crypto currency: according to Coinglass, more than $19.2 billion (€16.5 billion) in leveraged positions were liquidated.
Bitcoin and Ethereum, two major cryptocurrencies, both saw record-breaking liquidations and incurred the largest losses amidst sparking fears of a trade war between the US and China. Crypto investors are scrambling to move their money to more stable and safer assets. Bitcoin, the world’s largest cryptocurrency by value, plummeted between 8 and 12 per cent. Ethereum, on the other hand, plunged by around 11 per cent.
Other cryptocurrencies including XRP, DOGEcoin, and Ada reportedly fell by 19 per cent, 27 per cent, and 25 per cent, respectively.
Stocks on Wall Street saw a similar nosedive. The S&P 500 dipped 2.71 per cent, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped by 878 points, and the NASDAQ Composite dipped by 3.58 per cent by 4:00pm on Friday, October 10. They are the biggest single-day losses recorded since April of this year.
Recent amicable relations, on the rocks again due to tariff trouble
The move comes as a surprise to the White House, as Trump had previously described Washington’s relationship with China as “very good” in recent months. Additionally, Trump had been scheduled to meet with Chinese president Xi Jinping in two weeks in the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, to be held in South Korea, but claims that “now there seems to be no reason to do so,” unless China reconsiders the restrictions by November 1.
If China reverses the decision by November 1, the crypto spot prices might be able to recover, but the liquidations would remain final.
