Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed Tuesday as investors assessed U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff campaign.
Trump on Monday signed an order imposing 25% tariffs on imports of steel and aluminum into the U.S.
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 traded around the flatline.South Korea'sKospi
rose 0.72%, while the small-cap Kosdaq climbed 0.35%.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index slipped 0.56%, while the mainlan China's CSI 300 dipped 0.36%.
Japan markets were closed for a holiday.
Singapore's benchmark Straits Times Index slipped 0.44% after it hit an all-time intraday high of 3,910.12 on Monday.
India's benchmark Nifty 50 was down 0.32%, while the BSE Sensex index traded around the flatline.
As the specter of Donald Trump's reciprocal tariffs looms, several Asian economies that enjoy substantial trade surpluses with Washington are scrambling to negotiate favorable solutions with the U.S president to prevent being slapped with higher duties.
Trump said Friday that he would announce reciprocal tariffs — duties that match those levied on U.S. goods by respective countries — as soon as Tuesday, to take effect immediately. Trump did not identify which countries will be hit but indicated it would be a broad effort to help eliminate U.S. trade deficits.
While the details remain unclear, "it is likely that U.S. import tariffs will rise for most emerging Asian economies," a team of analysts at Barclays said Monday, with the exceptions of Singapore and Hong Kong, with which the U.S. enjoys trade surpluses.
Based on World Trade Organization estimates, most economies in Asia apply higher average tariffs on imports compared with the U.S. as of 2023. India led with a 17% simple average rate on countries with the most-favored-nation status, compared with the U.S. that levies 3.3%. The U.S. enjoys MFN status with most major economies, except Russia.
China topped trade surplus with the U.S. last year at $295.4 billion, followed by Vietnam's $123.5 billion, Taiwan's $74 billion, Japan's $68.5 billion and South Korea's $66 billion, according to U.S. Census bureau.
Just because these economies have dodged tariffs for now, [it] doesn't mean they can breathe easy," Stefan Angrick, senior economist at Moody's Analytics told CNBC, stressing that "Washington's mood could shift and tariffs could still be imposed later."
These countries, except for Vietnam, were spared in Trump's opening tariff salvo thanks to their deep security ties with Washington and large investments in the U.S., Angrick said, but "they shouldn't get too comfortable.(Cay) Newsmaker23

Source: CNBC