Stocks rebound from recent losses

US stocks fell in late afternoon trading, with the S&P 500 on track to close 10pc below its recent all-time high as technology shares tumbled after a report the Trump administration was set to ratchet up its trade war with China.

All major US averages fell at least 1pc, with selling intensifying after Bloomberg reported the US is preparing to announce by early December tariffs on all remaining Chinese imports if talks next month between presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping fail to ease the trade war.

As well as the S&P 500 drop, the Dow Jones Industrial Average sank almost 400 points and the Nasdaq 100 Index tumbled to its lowest level since May. All of the indexes are on track for the worst month of the record bull market.

“There’s this pessimism that has been hanging on this market the whole month,” said Chris Zaccarelli, chief investment officer at the Independent Advisor Alliance.

The rekindling of trade angst added to a pressure on American equities buffeted by concerns from peak earnings growth to the end of easy money and rising rates.

There were a host of news developments hitting specific markets around the world. Brazilian assets rose after Jair Bolsonaro swept to power. The euro fell as German Chancellor Angela Merkel said she will quit as head of her party after nearly two decades, though she intends to see out her term as Chancellor.

In Ireland the Irish Stock Exchange was open in spite of the bank holiday, and the Iseq index clawed back some recent losses in advancing 1.2pc to 6050.01.

Rises in heavily-weighted stocks helped lift the index higher, with CRH up 2pc.