U.S. equities have plunged.

U.S. equities have plunged, driven lower by further escalation of the U.S.-China tariff war. The Dow is off 1.4%, the S&P 500 has lost 1.5% and the NASDAQ has fallen 2.1% in pre-market trading. The PBoC cited "trade protectionism" as behind a decline in the yuan to an 11-year low below the politically sensitive 7.0 to the dollar level, with the currency depreciation threatening to worsen relations between the U.S. and China. Also, China asked state purchasers to cut imports of U.S. agricultural imports by half, reported Bloomberg. In Europe, the Euro Stoxx has contracted 1.6%, the CAC 40 has declined 1.9% and the DAX is down 1.5%. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 has plummeted 2.1%, as the threat has risen of a no-deal, disorderly Brexit scenario in less than three months. Losses were also evident in Asia, where Hong Kong's Hang Seng lost 2.9% amid intensifying pro-democracy protest. China's CSI 300 was down 1.9% and Japan's Nikkei 225 was 1.7% in the red.