RECESSION FEARS TRIGGER RED ALERT ACROSS MARKETS

HEY haven't given the day a moniker yet.

- SHANKKAR AIYAR

Friday saw every major global index, barring three, flashing red. Stocks, commodities and bond yields slid into negative territory.

Thanks to fears of a demand de-growth despite worries of a wider war in West Asia, Brent and WTI crude prices edged closer to year-to-date lows. Gold, the safe haven for anxious money, dipped and Bitcoin slid nearly 10 percent from Monday's high of $70,000.

It would seem there is a new consensus around the Chaucerian expression "all good things must come to an end". The slide in sentiments set off by the fall in the US markets on Thursday worsened and went global on Friday as the Nikkei 225 crashed over 2,000 points, apparently the worst fall since the Black Monday of 1987. Other Asian indices followed-the KOSPI, Shanghai and Shenzhen included. So did the FTSE and European indices.

In the US, the VIX or the fear gauge touched 29 before settling at 23.3. The Magnificent 7 tech stocks lost nearly $300 billion as investors shifted from 'tell me your AI strategy' to 'show me the earnings' on calls. Tech totem NASDAQ landed in correction territory and investor wealth of $2.9 trillion was wiped out.

In India, the Nifty 50 tap-danced to the tune of the global piper. Sure, India has been among the better performing markets with a credible track record of returns, thanks to the robust flow of domestic savings.