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Asia-Pacific markets mixed as Trump administration prepares to roll out fresh tariffs

Lee Ying Shan

This is CNBC's live blog covering Asia-Pacific markets.

People walking through the neon lit night streets of Sinchon in the heart of Seoul, South Korea’s vibrant capital city.
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Asia-Pacific markets were mixed Wednesday as investors brace for U.S. President Donald Trump to roll out fresh tariffs this week.

Japan's Nikkei 225 traded 0.28% higher to close at 35,725.87 while the Topix declined 0.43% to close at 2,650.29. South Korea's Kospi slipped 0.62% to close at 2,505.86 and the small-cap Kosdaq lost 0.95% to close at 684.85.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 traded 0.12% higher to close at 7,934.5.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index traded flat to close at 23,205.15 while mainland China's CSI 300 slipped 0.08% to end the trading day at 3,884.39.

India's Nifty 50 gained 0.45%.


U.S. stock futures slipped as Wall Street awaits the expected rollout of President Donald Trump's tariffs on Wednesday.

Overnight in the U.S., the three major averages closed mixed. The S&P 500 added 0.38% to close at 5,633.07 while the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.87% and ended at 17,449.89. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 11.80 points, or 0.03%, to settle at 41,989.96

While markets are likely to be volatile in the near term, UBS analysts expect news flow to become "more positive" toward the second half of the year.

"We think investors can use market swings to build long-term exposure. Investors should therefore consider taking advantage of market dips to buy into broad U.S. equities and companies exposed to AI," the investment bank wrote in a note.

— CNBC's Brian Evans and Lisa Kailai Han contributed to this report.

India's 10-year government bond yield falls to lowest in over three years

India's 10-year benchmark government bond yield slid to its lowest level since January 2022, data from LSEG showed.

"Foreign funds are getting confident of rupee stability as well as India's macro-economic stability," said Anuj Tagra, vice president and portfolio manager of Franklin Templeton's India Fixed Income team.

"Market expectations of RBI's push to focus on growth through rate cuts and infusion of liquidity into the system has brought back attractiveness of debt as an asset class with the foreign investors."

—Lee Ying Shan

Current oil price rally not sustainable, says BMI analysts

Brent crude prices have climbed back to around $74 amid growing geopolitical concerns tied to potential U.S. actions that may impact oil exports from Venezuela and Iran, noted Citi.

This marks a reversal of the sell-off in early March which notched oil prices down to $69, largely thanks to OPEC+'s announcement to begin easing production cuts in April and rising fears of U.S. tariffs, Citi's analysts wrote.

However, the rally will "struggle to hold," as a result of macroeconomic uncertainties, Fitch Solutions' research unit BMI said.

"While U.S. President Donald Trump's approach to tariffs has been somewhat erratic, effective tariff rates are rising globally, raising concerns for the health of the global economy and, consequently, the demand for oil," said BMI analysts.

Brent futures last inched up 0.04% to $74.51 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate rose $0.04 to $71.23 a barrel. 

—Lee Ying Shan

BOJ governor says U.S. tariffs may have a 'big impact' on trade activity: Reuters

Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda has reportedly warned that U.S. tariffs will have a huge impact on global trade.

Speaking to Japan's parliament, his comments come as U.S. President Donald Trump prepares to roll out reciprocal tariffs on April 2 stateside, as well as auto tariffs on April 3.

In Asia, Japanese automakers are expected to see the most pain from the auto tariffs, with experts telling CNBC Toyota could be the worst hit.

— Lim Hui Jie, Reuters

Thai baht slips to weakest in over a month after announcement of potential U.S. tariffs

Thailand's commerce ministry said the country's semiconductor exports could face 25% tariffs from the U.S., and that potential U.S. tariffs could cost the country between $7 billion and $8 billion.

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Thai baht in past six months

The Thai baht lost 0.2% to trade at 34.22 against the dollar, marking the weakest since February 28, data from LSEG showed.

—Lee Ying Shan

Japan's Nikkei 225 slips to lowest since September

Japan's Nikkei 225 slipped 0.47% to its lowest since September, data from FactSet showed, as investors brace for U.S. President Donald Trump's latest round of tariffs.

Index heavyweight SoftBank slipped 2.22%, while telecom company Kddi, which has the fifth largest weightage in the index, fell 1.68%. Sumitomo Pharma led losses, down 4.4%.

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Nikkei 225's performance in the past year

Japan's Topix declined 1.08%.

— Lee Ying Shan

Shares of Japanese and Korean automakers fall

Shares of Japan and Korean automakers declined after rebounding on Tuesday.

Nissan, which has three plants in Mexico, declined 2.43%. Toyota and Honda fell 0.74% and 0.74% respectively. Mazda Motor lost over 0.51%.

South Korea's Kia Motors, which has a manufacturing plant in Mexico, slipped 0.75%.

—Lee Ying Shan

South Korean financial watchdog governor wants to resign

South Korea's Financial Supervisory Service Governor Lee Bok-hyun wants to step down, local media outlets reported.

"When I told the Chairman of the Financial Services Commission, the Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs and the Governor of the Bank of Korea also contacted me and told me that the market situation is very difficult and that I should not act rashly," Lee reportedly said on a news show.

South Korea inflation accelerates marginally in March

South Korea's inflation climbed 2.1% year-on-year in March, higher than the 2% seen in February.

This was also higher than the 2% rise expected by economists polled by Reuters.

Core inflation in the country — which strips out prices of food and energy — increased 1.9% compared to the same period last year.

— Lim Hui Jie

S&P 500 closes higher on eve of tariff announcement

The S&P 500 closed higher on Tuesday in yet another volatile session that saw the broad market index seesaw between gains and losses, as investors anxiously await the rollout of President Donald Trump's tariffs.

The S&P 500 added 0.38% to finish the session at 5,633.07, while the Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.87% to 17,449.89. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 11.80 points, or 0.03%, to close at 41,989.96.

— Brian Evans

The risks around April 2 are 'not small,' Wells Fargo Securities says

Christopher Harvey, head of equity strategy at Wells Fargo Securities, said he remains constructive on the long-term outlook for stocks, but warned investors not to underestimate the potential risks around the April 2nd tariff announcement.

"We remain constructive on equities longer term given: (1) potential monetary stimulus (i.e., 75+ bps of 2025 Fed rate cuts) starting by mid-year; (2) anticipated tax bill movement (and possible enactment) this summer; and (3) several uber-caps already look oversold (TSLA, AVGO, NVDA)," Harvey wrote Tuesday.

"However, the risks are not small and recession is possible. We are worried most about the potential unintended consequences of aggressive tariff moves," Harvey said.

— Sarah Min