Asia-Pacific markets trade mixed on tariff uncertainty and recession fears in the U.S.
Asia-Pacific markets were mixed on Wednesday, after all three benchmarks in Wall Street whipsawed on uncertainty over U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff plans and fears of a recession in the world’s largest economy.
The White House confirmed that the 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum would take effect on Canada and other nations from Wednesday state side, but added that Trump no longer plans to raise tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum imports to 50%.
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 index was up 0.25% in early trade, while the broader Topix index edged up 0.61%.
South Korea’s Kospi index was up 0.65% in early trade, while the small-cap Kosdaq rose 1.11%.Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was down 1.43%.
Futures for Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index stood at 23,765 pointing to a weaker open compared to the HSI’s close of 23,782.14.
Elsewhere, India is expected to release its inflation figures for February later in the day. Economists polled by Reuters expect it to slow to 3.98% from 5.68% in January.
Overnight in the U.S., stocks slid stocks slid amid uncertainty over the new tariffs proposed by Trump that were in flux throughout most of Tuesday. The trade policy uncertainty has brought the benchmark to the brink of a correction, which is defined as a decline of 10% from its high.
Source: CNBC
