Stocks around the world fell sharply on Friday, led by the US, after Donald Trump floated new tariffs on Chinese goods, citing Beijing's controls on critical mineral exports. The S&P 500 dropped 2.7% and the Nasdaq 3.5%, while market volatility rose and investors shifted towards safer assets like Treasuries and gold. Though this marks the largest single-day fall since April, many investors see this as part of Trump's usual negotiating style, coined by the phrase 'Trump Always Chickens Out' or 'TACO' rather than the start of a full trade war. By Monday, markets had already begun to stabilise, with equity futures rising and bond yields edging back up. The episode highlights how sensitive markets remain to trade rhetoric, but also how resilient sentiment can be if underlying economic fundamentals stay intact.