Pedestrians walking across a crowded traffic at Shibuya crossing square in Tokyo, Japan.
Jaczhou | E+ | Getty Images
Asia-Pacific markets traded higher Wednesday, tracking Wall Street gains on expectations that U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs could be softer than expected earlier.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 opened 0.71% higher.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.63% at the open, while the Topix added 0.39%. South Korea’s Kospi climbed 0.38% while the small-cap Kosdaq traded 0.28% lower.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 0.75% while mainland China’s CSI 300 traded flat. The Hang Seng Tech index, which tracks the 30 largest technology companies listed in Hong Kong is 0.84% higher as it dances around the brink of correction.
According to reports from The Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg, the White House’s planned tariffs set for April 2 are expected to be narrow in scope. Trump also on Friday suggested some “flexibility” for his reciprocal tariff plans for trading partners. However, U.S. consumers’ confidence is taking a hit.
“As President Trump prepares to escalate the trade war next week, U.S. consumers are increasingly inflation-weary, their finances are more fragile, and they face higher risks in the labor market,” Morning Consult wrote in a note, adding that U.S. consumers are expected to cut spending across all income brackets.
U.S. stock futures were little changed after the S&P 500 posted a marginal gain, marking its third positive session in a row.
Overnight in the U.S., all three major averages closed higher. The S&P 500 posted a slim gain, adding 0.16% to close at 5,776.65. The Nasdaq Composite gained 0.46% and ended at 18,271.86. The Dow Jones Industrial Average crept higher by 4.18 points, or 0.01%, to settle at 42,587.50.
CNBC’s Pia Singh and Hayung Kim contributed to this report.
Stocks end Tuesday in positive territory
Energy outperforms in March
Energy, which has climbed 3.2% month to date, is the only positive sector in March.
The top outperformers in the sector are EQT and Expand Energy, which have jumped around 13% and 11%, respectively, for the month.
The energy sector was last up 0.3% Tuesday.
— Hakyung Kim