Canada’s main stock index plummeted on Friday, driven by declines in energy and mining stocks, as a global selloff intensified due to China’s retaliatory measures against US tariffs. The tariffs announced by President Trump on Wednesday caused a sharp drop in global financial markets, marking the end of a long period of trade liberalization. In economic news, Statistics Canada reported a decrease in employment by 33,000 (-0.2 per cent) in March, with the unemployment rate rising by 0.1 percentage point to 6.7 per cent.
Wall Street experienced another significant downturn after China responded with new tariffs on US goods, heightening concerns about a potential trade war that could lead to a global recession. China’s commerce ministry announced on Friday that the country would impose a 34 per cent tariff on all US products, mirroring the tariff on Chinese goods entering the US that President Trump revealed on Wednesday.
| TSX | 23,193.47 | -1,142.30 |  |
| TSXV | 575.92 | -38.36 | |
| CSE | 108.95 | -4.59 | |
| DJIA | 38,314.86 | -2,231.07 | |
| NASDAQ | 17,397.69 | -1,123.78 | |
| S&P 500 | 5,076.61 | -319.91 | |
The Canadian dollar traded for 70.25 cents US compared to 70.95 cents US on Thursday.
US crude futures traded US$5.28 lower at US$61.67 a barrel, and the Brent contract lost US$4.92 to US$65.22 a barrel.
The price of gold was down US$65.95 to US$3,037.07.
In world markets, the Nikkei was down 955.35 points to ¥33,780.58, the Hang Seng remained at HK$22,849.81, the FTSE down 419.76 points to ₤8,054.98, and the DAX was down 1,012.37 points to €20,705.02.
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(Top image generated with AI.)
