Asia-Pacific markets fell Thursday, as investors weighed U.S. President Donald Trump’s proposed tariffs on autos, chips and pharmaceutical imports as well as the Federal Reserve potentially keeping rates higher for longer.
Trump, who said the duties could be implemented as soon as April 2, did not specify whether they will be targeted at imports from certain countries or be broad-based.
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 and broader Topix index ended the day in negative territory for the second day. The Nikkei 225 closed 1.24% lower at 38,678.04, while the broader Topix index fell 1.18% to 2,734.60.
The yen rose to a more than two-month high of 150.52 per U.S. dollar earlier in the day amid bets of more rate hikes by the Bank of Japan this year.
In South Korea, the Kospi closed down 0.65% at 2,654.06, while the small-cap Kosdaq lost 1.28% to end the day at 768.27.
Mainland China’s CSI 300 dipped 0.29% to close at 3.928.90, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 1.60% to 22,576.98.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 declined for the fourth straight day. The index closed 1.15% lower at 8,322.80.
The country’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate rose to 4.1% in January, in line with Reuters’ estimates.
Indian stocks were also in negative territory, with the Nifty 50 down 0.15%, while the BSE Sensex index fell 0.31% as at 2.15 p.m. local time.
