India’s benchmark stock indices plunged more than 3.5% in early trade on Monday as the United States showed no signs of backing down on its tariff plan and amid recession fears.

The Sensex fell about 3,000 points as trading began on Monday morning. The Nifty 50 dived by about 1,000 points.

The so-called reciprocal tariffs, announced by US President Donald Trump last week, are scheduled to take effect on Wednesday.

On Sunday, Trump said that he will not back down on the tariffs on imports from most of the world unless countries even out their trade with the US, the Associated Press reported.

Trump said he did not want global markets to fall, but added that he was not concerned about the staggering sell-off underway. “Sometimes you have to take medicine to fix something,” the US president told reporters.

White House officials said that more than 50 nations had reached out to the US to begin negotiations to end the tariffs.

The major Asian stock indices also plunged on Monday morning. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index opened with a fall of about 9%.

Japan’s Nikkei fell 6%, falling to a level last seen in late 2023, Reuters reported. South Korea’s Kospi plummeted 5%.

Similarly, the price of Brent crude oil fell by $1.35 per barrel to $64.23 a barrel. US crude oil price also fell by $1.39 per barrel to $60.60 a barrel.

On April 2, Trump announced a 10% minimum tariff on most goods imported into the country, which took effect on Saturday. The US government also imposed a 25% tariff on all foreign-made automobiles, which took effect on April 3.

Besides, Washington said that it was imposing “reciprocal” tariffs on dozens of countries, including a 26% “discounted” levy on India, which will take effect on Wednesday.

Trump had repeatedly said he intended to impose a reciprocal tax on India, among others, citing high tariffs the countries impose on foreign goods. He has already imposed tariffs on a range of products from Canada, Mexico and China.

The tariffs have led to concerns of a broader trade war that could disrupt the global economy and trigger recession.

A day after the tariffs plan was announced, New York-based financial services firm JPMorgan revised its odds for a global recession by the end of 2025 from 40% to 60%.

In a research note published to clients, Bruce Kasman, the firm’s chief global economist said: “Disruptive US policies has been recognised as the biggest risk to the global outlook all year. The latest news reinforces our fears as US trade policy has turned decisively less business-friendly than we had anticipated.”

The Indian government on Thursday said that it is “carefully examining the implications of the various measures” related to new tariffs announced by the US.

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