Japan’s Shares Drop as Trump Tariffs Hit Autos; Chipmakers Fall
Japanese shares fall as President Donald Trump’s unveiling of a 25% tariff on cars produced outside the US drags down export-related stocks including automakers, which are some of the nation’s biggest companies.
Chipmakers are also under pressure on a Financial Times report that China is advising domestic firms to use semiconductors that meet strict requirements in new data centers and expansion of existing facilities.
Topix Index falls 0.6% to 2,795.42 as of 10:05 a.m. Tokyo time
Nikkei declines 0.9% to 37,675.76
Toyota Motor Corp. contributed the most to the Topix’s losses, decreasing 3.5%. The company gets more than half its revenue from North America. Out of 1,692 stocks in the index, 836 fell and 768 rose, while 88 were unchanged.
Trump’s car tariffs go into effect from April 2, but the US president also said that reciprocal duties that are set to be announced next week will be “very lenient.”
“It’s not just about Japanese cars,” says Hitoshi Asaoka, a strategist at Asset Management One. “American consumption has a large impact on the overall US economy and on the overall global economy, so there is more concern on that front.”
Source : Bloomberg
