Nowhere to hide! U.S. stocks plummeted for two days, with $6 trillion "vanishing into thin air." "Things are developing too quickly, leaving many feeling confused, scared, and angry."

The U.S. stock market has experienced an epic crash over the past two days, with $6 trillion in market value "vanishing into thin air." Various assets have "nowhere to hide," and even safe-haven assets like gold have struggled to escape unscathed. For Wall Street, the week began with anxiety ahead of tariff implementation, ultimately evolving into fear.

As of the overnight close, the three major U.S. stock indices plummeted collectively. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell more than 2,000 points in a single day and entered correction territory, the S&P dropped nearly 6%, marking its largest decline in five years, and the Nasdaq fell 10% over the week, entering a bear market.

Meanwhile, several major Wall Street indices tracking U.S. tech stocks, bank stocks, and small-cap stocks have all entered the so-called "bear market" territory. The Nasdaq Composite Index fell 5.8% on Friday, down 22.7% from its historical peak in mid-December. The index tracking the tech giants "MAG 7" has been in a bear market since Thursday, now down over 25% from its peak on Christmas Eve last year.

The implementation of tariffs seems to have brought the prospect of economic recession closer, with market panic reaching its highest point since the pandemic. People are even struggling to imagine how the world will operate a month from now, and are utterly at a loss regarding the economy a year from now.

Even seasoned professionals on Wall Street are feeling the pressure of this moment, which may mark the beginning of the most turbulent and uncertain period in the market in years.

"No positive news to be found," "clients are very anxious"

Steve Sosnick, Chief Strategist at Interactive Brokers, stated:

Many people in the market are feeling confused, fearful, and angry.

Mark Malek, Chief Investment Officer at Siebert Financial, noted that client calls were incessant on Friday morning, with everyone worried about Thursday's plunge.

They can't find any positive news... even the most bullish economists have turned pessimistic about these tariffs.

Many clients are very anxious. We have been reminding them to focus on the long term.

Adam Phillips, Managing Director at EP Wealth Advisors, had warned clients earlier this year that after two consecutive years of significant gains in the S&P 500, 2025 might be more volatile. However, he did not anticipate this major drop. This week, he quickly recorded a video to reassure clients: do not act impulsively:

We have almost never done this before... things are developing too quickly.

Callie Cox, Chief Market Strategist at Ritholtz Wealth Management, described:

We are experiencing a self-induced vomiting phase, which is the best metaphor I can think of for this week's situation.

Safe-haven assets are no longer safe

Traditional safe-haven assets have also not escaped the turmoil. Although investors continue to seek the safety of government bonds and gold amid market volatility, the outlook is not optimisticThe 10-year U.S. Treasury yield has fallen below 4% for the first time since October last year, marking the largest weekly decline since August, indicating heightened concerns about an economic recession.

More worryingly, gold futures fell 2.7% to $3,012 per ounce on Friday after hitting a record high earlier this week. Meanwhile, oil prices plummeted to their lowest level in nearly four years. Within two days of Trump's announcement of the tariff plan, U.S. oil fell nearly 14%.

The unusual volatility in the crude oil market is forcing energy traders to abandon their conventional pricing models used to predict oil prices.

Energy trading firm Ritterbusch & Associates stated in a report sent to clients on Friday that supply and demand data indicate that oil prices have overshot, but even these indicators, along with the traditional relationships between global oil prices, cannot serve as references at this moment. They warned that oil prices could plummet further, and even if gasoline prices are cheap:

Predicting the price bottom will be very difficult.

Panic levels reach the highest point since the pandemic; Federal Reserve issues emergency statement

Wall Street's fear gauge is flashing warning signals. According to Dow Jones Market Data, the Chicago Board Options Exchange Volatility Index (VIX) surged to its highest closing level since April 2020.

Global bank economists have become more pessimistic about the economic outlook, with many raising their recession expectations. A group of economists at JP Morgan raised the probability of a global economic recession from 40% to 60%.

Traders have increased their bets on interest rate cuts this year, expecting the Federal Reserve to act when the economy shows signs of weakness. In a speech on Friday, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell stated that the central bank would be able to respond to any impacts from Trump's tariffs to prevent a one-time price spike from evolving into persistent inflation.

Global markets decline in unison; IPO market comes to a halt

The stock market crash seems to have closed the door on IPOs, with ticketing platform StubHub and "buy now, pay later" fintech company Klarna both postponing their IPO roadshows.

Overseas markets have also been severely impacted. The Nikkei 225 index saw a weekly decline of 9%, while the STOXX Europe 600 index plummeted 8%. Both indices recorded their largest weekly percentage declines since March 2020.

This wave of systemic market turmoil shows that investors are in a state of extreme panic, and this uncertainty may persist for a longer time until the market finds a new equilibrium.

Risk warning and disclaimerThe market has risks, and investment requires caution. This article does not constitute personal investment advice and does not take into account the specific investment goals, financial situation, or needs of individual users. Users should consider whether any opinions, views, or conclusions in this article align with their specific circumstances. Investment based on this is at one's own risk