The pan-European STOXX 600 index was down 0.5% as of 0712 GMT.

A lack of clarity over the size and scope of the tariffs and the response from other countries has rattled sentiment, pushing the STOXX 600 to more than two-month lows this week and about 4.6% below its all-time high in March.

Eurozone bond yields, however, were little changed.

German 10-year bond yield, the benchmark for the eurozone bloc, was unchanged at 2.685, having dropped for five straight sessions. Italy’s 10-year yield was also steady at 3.796%, and French 10-year bond yields held at 3.404%.

Meanwhile, Asian stocks were mixed on Wednesday, with benchmarks little changed.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 was up 0.3% at 35,725.87. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was down 0.1% at 23,176.47, while the Shanghai Composite was down less than 0.1% at 3,346.66. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was up 0.1% at 7,934.50. South Korea’s Kospi fell 0.7% to 2,504.86.

In anticipation of the announcement of new US reciprocal tariffs, the world’s major economies have vowed to retaliate.

The European Union has a “strong plan” to retaliate against tariffs imposed, and set to be imposed, by US President Donald Trump, but it would prefer to negotiate a solution, EU Commissin President Ursula von der Leyen said on Tuesday.

“We are going to be very deliberative in terms of the measures we take, to fight for Canada,” Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said on Tuesday.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and his rival in May’s election, Liberal Party leader Peter Dutton, said they would stand up for the country’s national interests in the face of looming US tariffs.

Meanwhile, other top exporters are trying to build alliances to counter the US, with China, Japan and South Korea accelerating talks on a free trade agreement.

And Vietnam, in an effort to appease Trump, said it would lower tariffs on a number of goods.

US President Donald Trump was poised to impose sweeping new reciprocal tariffs on Wednesday, a day he has dubbed “Liberation Day.”

An announcement ceremony in the White House Rose Garden is scheduled for 4 pm local time (2000 GMT).

We will be following the events surrounding the announcement, as well as how markets and other countries react to the new US tariffs.