Wall Street looked set to crater on Monday after the U.S. Federal Reserve's aggressive move to cut interest rates to nearly zero heightened fears of the economy tipping into a coronavirus-driven recession.

S&P 500 ETFs plunged nine percent after the Fed slashed short-term rates by 100 basis points and pledged sweeping asset purchases in coming weeks.

S&P 500 e-mini futures fell by 4.77 percent to hit a daily down trading limit overnight, suggesting heavy losses for the benchmark at the open and a possible 15-minute cutout put in place to prevent another 1987 "Black Monday"-style crash.

Central banks in Japan, Australia and New Zealand joined the Fed in announcing dramatic monetary easing in a coordinated effort not seen since the 2008 financial crisis, but failed to shore up global investor sentiment.

World stocks tumbled nearly two percent, oil prices slumped and even safe-haven gold took a hit as France and Spain joined Italy in entering virtual lockdowns and the global death toll from the outbreak topped 6,500.

The extent of the Fed's action, taken ahead of its scheduled meeting set for Tuesday and Wednesday, spooked investors following Wall Street's attempt at a rebound on Friday as President Donald Trump declared a national emergency and earmarked 50 billion U.S. dollars in fiscal aid.

"We're facing the loss of credibility of the central bank from a market perspective," said Michael O'Rourke, chief market strategist at JonesTrading. "When the investor community loses faith in the Fed, that's when the market gets very dangerous."

(With input from Reuters)