A man carrying a kite in the shape of the Chinese national flag walks along the Bund while buildings of Pudong’s Lujiazui financial district in Shanghai, China
Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed Friday, after Wall Street resumed sell-off overnight as trade war tensions between the world’s two largest economies fueled risk-off mood.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.82% to close at 7,646.5.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 lost 2.96% to close at 33,585.58 while the Topix traded 2.85% lower to close at 2,466.91. South Korea’s Kospi fell 0.5% to end the trading day at 2,432.72 and the small-cap Kosdaq rose 2.02% to close at 695.59.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index was up 1.13% to close at 20,914.69 while China’s CSI 300 added 0.41% to close at 3,750.52.
U.S. President Donald Trump announced a tariff U-turn Wednesday, dropping the new reciprocal tariff rates on imports from most countries for 90 days.
“The extension of time does not alleviate uncertainty,” ANZ analysts wrote in a note. “There is skepticism about the outcome of trade negotiations, and that will continue to weigh on investment and thus the growth outlook.”
Additionally, the cumulative tariff rate on China now would be 145%, the White House confirmed to CNBC on Thursday. The figure consists of the new 125% duty on goods, on top of the 20% duty linked to the fentanyl crisis.
U.S. stock futures moved higher as investors look to close out a volatile week, punctuated by sharp swings for the major averages. S&P 500 futures added 0.3%, while Nasdaq 100 futures climbed roughly 0.1%. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average ticked higher by 28 points, or nearly 0.1%.
Overnight in the U.S., the three major averages closed lower, giving back some of the gains from the historic rally seen in the previous session after President Donald Trump announced a 90-day reprieve on some of his “reciprocal” tariffs.
The S&P 500 sold off 3.46% and closed at 5,268.05, while the Nasdaq Composite slid 4.31% to end at 16,387.31. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 1,014.79 points, or 2.5%, settling at 39,593.66.
— CNBC’s Pia Singh, Hakyung Kim and Sean Conlon contributed to this report.
China unlikely to aggressively devalue yuan to offset impact of U.S. tariffs, economists say
China will not be able to wield a weaker yuan as a weapon in its deepening trade war with the U.S. due to concerns that such a move could trigger financial market instability, market watchers told CNBC.
Among 11 analysts polled by CNBC, a majority do not see the currency weakening significantly in the long-term. Instead, economists expect the central bank to engineer an orderly and gradual depreciation.
Read the full story here.
—Lee Ying Shan, Asriel Chua
China central bank deputy governor reaffirms ‘moderately loose’ monetary policy at regional summit
The People’s Bank of China reaffirmed its plans for a “moderately loose” monetary policy in a statement published on Friday, as Beijing gears up for heightened uncertainty amid an escalating global trade war.
Speaking at a regular meeting with top finance and central bank officials from Japan and South Korea, Xuan Changneng, PBOC’s deputy governor, said the central bank will ensure smooth operation of the Chinese financial markets and support the continued recovery of its economy.
The trilateral meeting took place during a summit, that lasted from Tuesday to Wednesday in Malaysia, where top officials from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), China, Japan and South Korea also exchanged views on the impact from U.S. trade policies on global economies.
— Anniek Bao
Gold price hits new record high, crossing $3,200 for the first time
Gold futures hit a fresh record high of $3,226 per ounce as festering trade tensions between the world’s two largest economies culminated in a rush towards the safe haven asset.
“Persistent tariffs and policy unpredictability continue to elevate the risk of stagflation, further increasing the demand for gold as the best safe-haven asset,” said Paul Wong, market strategist at Sprott Asset Management.
Wong added that he believes the current economic environment will continue to support rising gold prices.
—Lee Ying Shan
Major averages close lower Thursday
U.S. stocks ended Thursday’s session in negative territory.
The S&P 500 dropped 3.46%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 1,014.79 points, or 2.5%. The Nasdaq Composite declined 4.31%.
— Hakyung Kim
Bitcoin falls as investors slash rally gains but holds just under $80,000
Jakub Porzycki | Nurphoto | Getty Images
Cryptocurrencies pulled back with the broader market as investors gave back more than half of Wednesday’s historic rally.
The price of bitcoin fell nearly 4% to $79,158.62, according to Coin Metrics. Ether dropped 8% and Solana’s SOL token tumbled more than 7%.
Meanwhile, Coinbase fell 6%, while bitcoin proxy Strategy lost about 8%.
Many investors have been impressed by bitcoin’s resilience since the tariff-fueled market volatility began a week ago. At $79,000, bitcoin is hovering just under the $80,000 floor that has supported it for much of this year.
“While it’s no secret that BTC is still closely tied to the daily fluctuations of the market and overall sentiment, its ability to hang in in the face of this recent bloodbath has been impressive,” Read Harvey, an analyst at Wolfe Research, said in a note. “This further leads us to view the coin as a reliable store of value, and with the market down almost double that of BTC in the past four weeks, its strength is on full demonstration.”
— Tanaya Macheel
Gold rises to best day since April 2020
Gold futures settled 3.2% higher at $3,177.50 Thursday, marking its best day since April 9, 2020.
Week to date, gold futures are up around 4.7%, on track for their best week since Nov. 22, 2024.
— Hakyung Kim, Gina Francolla
Trump declines to rule out extension of tariff pause
U.S. President Donald Trump attends a cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington, D.C., on April 10, 2025.
Nathan Howard | Reuters
Trump did not rule out extending his tariff pause beyond 90 days.
“We’ll have to see what happens at that time,” Trump said to reporters during a cabinet meeting.
The pause on some import duties that Trump announced on Wednesday is currently slated to end in July.
— Jesse Pound