Stonks only go up... until they go down.  Nasdaq has been in a bear market since March, with nearly half of the index's constituents off more than 50% below their 52-week highs. Assets with no intrinsic value have been hit the hardest – cryptocurrencies are down 50% from recent highs.  Fund flows fell to their lowest level since the depths of the COVID crisis as inflows from institutional money and retail investors dried up.

Recession fears continue to be rife amid fresh warnings from tech companies that aren't helping the situation. Uber just became the latest to sound the alarm, announcing a hiring slowdown to address the severe swing in economic sentiment. Last week, Facebook also told staff it would stop or slow the pace of adding mid-level or senior positions, while Robinhood previously declared that it would slash its workforce by around 9%.  Banks are also starting to trim mortgage origination and underwriting staff.  

Chinese export growth slowed sharply last month, as the world’s second-biggest economy was battered by draconian coronavirus lockdowns and weakening global demand. Exports increased 3.9 per cent in April from a year earlier — the slowest rate in two years — after growing almost 15 per cent the previous month, official data showed, as supply chains were choked by unpredictable and ambiguous Covid-19 rules.  The hit to the country’s manufacturers has also dimmed hopes that Beijing will be able to achieve its goal of 5.5 per cent annual growth, its lowest target in three decades.