Investors fear a full-scale trade war sparked by the Trump administration’s sweeping tariffs will plunge the global economy into recession and could wipe more than half a trillion dollars from the Australian sharemarket, which suffered its worst one-day fall since the pandemic.

Brokers and investors across the market are increasingly certain that prolonged uncertainty will put a brake on corporate earnings and spending, concerns that carved $97 billion from the S&P/ASX 200 on Monday.