Asian stock markets presented a mixed performance on Tuesday, with investors responding to President-elect Donald Trump's announcement of additional tariffs - 10% on all Chinese imports and 25% on goods from Mexico and Canada. These measures stoked fears of escalating global trade tensions, despite the generally positive sentiment from Wall Street the previous night. Most Asian markets concluded Monday on a higher note.
Traders showed caution, refraining from major actions as they anticipated crucial U.S. economic data, including consumer price inflation figures favored by the Federal Reserve, set for release later in the week.
In Australia, the stock market saw a slight downturn on Tuesday, reversing gains from the past two sessions, due to declines in financial and energy stocks amidst falling crude oil prices. The S&P/ASX 200 index dipped below the 8,400 mark, pulling back from record highs. The index dropped by 30.80 points or 0.37% to 8,386.80, fluctuating between an early high of 8,433.00 and a low of 8,372.40. Meanwhile, the All Ordinaries Index retreated by 21.00 points or 0.24%, settling at 8,640.20, after modest gains on Monday.
Key mining firms displayed varied performance: BHP Group saw a slight drop of 0.2%, while Rio Tinto, Mineral Resources, and Fortescue Metals registered modest gains between 0.1% and 0.5%.
Oil companies faced a decline, with Origin Energy down nearly 1%, Woodside Energy dropping almost 2%, Beach Energy decreasing almost 3%, and Santos declining more than 2%.
Tech stocks also experienced fluctuations, with Block (owner of Afterpay) falling over 3%, Appen down more than 2%, and Xero easing 0.5%. In contrast, WiseTech Global rose by over 1% and Zip moved up 0.5%.
Gold miners mostly trended downward: Gold Road Resources fell almost 1%, while Northern Star Resources and Evolution Mining slipped nearly 2% each. Conversely, Resolute Mining increased by over 1%, and Newmont ticked up 0.4%.
Among the major banks, Commonwealth Bank dropped nearly 3%, ANZ Banking fell 1.5%, Westpac declined more than 1%, and National Australia Bank decreased almost 2%.
On a positive note, shares in EML Payments soared over 23% following a report of a 46% rise in underlying earnings for the first quarter of fiscal 2025.
Meanwhile, the Aussie dollar traded at $0.647 on Tuesday.
In Japan, the stock market declined noticeably, wiping out gains from previous sessions. The Nikkei 225 fell below the 38,300 level, affected by broad-based sector weaknesses, particularly in technology and financials, despite positive leads from Wall Street. The index ended the morning session at 38,260.38, down by 519.76 points or 1.34%, after briefly hitting a low of 38,020.08. On Monday, Japanese stocks had closed significantly higher.
Key declines included SoftBank Group, down over 1%, and Fast Retailing (operator of Uniqlo) easing by 0.3%. Among automakers, Honda and Toyota each fell over 1%.
In technology, Advantest dropped nearly 5%, Screen Holdings fell more than 2%, and Tokyo Electron slipped almost 3%.
The banking sector also saw dips, with Mitsubishi UFJ Financial down 1.5%, Mizuho Financial over 1%, and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial declining more than 2%.
Major exporters saw losses, with Panasonic falling nearly 2%, Mitsubishi Electric down almost 3%, Canon off almost 1%, and Sony dipping 0.4%.
Notable declines were seen in Fujikura, Lasertec, Furukawa Electric, and Mercari, each losing 5% or more. Other Japanese companies like Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Sumco, Mitsubishi Motors, Nissan Motor, IHI, and Disco saw declines of more than 4%, while Hitachi and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries lost nearly 4%, and Mitsubishi and NTT Data Group slid over 3%.
Conversely, firms like Haseko, ZOZO, Kao, Toray Industries, Keisei Electric Railway, and Sapporo Holdings gained close to 3% each.
In economic news, the Bank of Japan reported that producer prices in Japan rose by 2.9% in October compared to the previous year. This was an uptick from the revised 2.8% increase in September and surpassed expectations of a 2.5% rise. Monthly, producer prices jumped 0.8% after a 0.1% dip the preceding month. Excluding international transportation, producer prices surged 3.1% annually and 0.8% monthly.In the foreign exchange market, the U.S. dollar is currently trading in the upper range of 153 yen this Tuesday. Across other Asian markets, countries such as New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan are experiencing declines ranging from 0.4% to 1.2%. Conversely, China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, and Indonesia are seeing gains between 0.1% and 0.6%.
On Wall Street, there was a mixed performance as stocks initially surged but pulled back slightly over the course of Monday's trading session, ultimately finishing mostly on an upward note. Despite the pullback from peak levels, the Dow Jones Industrial Average hit a new record closing high. Specifically, the Dow increased for the fourth straight session, rising by 440.06 points, or 1.0%, to reach 44,736.57. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 continued its winning streak for a sixth session, gaining 18.03 points, or 0.3%, to settle at 5,987.37. The Nasdaq also advanced by 51.18 points, or 0.3%, closing at 19,054.84.
In Europe, major markets also experienced upward movements. The French CAC 40 Index finished marginally above flat, whereas the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index and Germany's DAX Index both saw increases of 0.4%.
In commodities, crude oil prices experienced a significant decline on Monday due to reports indicating the possibility of an imminent ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hezbollah. West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures for January delivery fell by $2.30, or 3.2%, concluding at $68.94 per barrel.
