Japan Leads Asian Stocks Lower on Tariff Angst
Asian shares edged lower at the open after President Donald Trump said he won’t delay the July 9 deadline for imposing higher levies on trading partners.
A regional stocks gauge fell 0.2%. Japanese stocks declined 1% after Trump threatened to hike tariffs on the country and deepened his criticism of Japan for not accepting US rice exports. A gauge of the dollar slipped in early Asian trading after touching its lowest since 2022 in the prior session. Treasuries were steady Wednesday after yields rose on Tuesday.
Investors are closely watching how Trump decides to handle the current pause on his April tariffs, which he put on hold for 90 days to allow time for talks. Stock markets - which once swung wildly on trade headlines - appear to see little risk, as equity indexes sit near all-time highs. The calm is being fueled by expectations that Trump will extend his tariff deadline based on his pattern of threatening first and backing down later.
“While US stocks are probably overly optimistic, international stocks have been prone to an overly pessimistic knee-jerk response each time Trump escalates,” said Phillip Wool, head of portfolio management at Rayliant Global Advisors Ltd. “It’s not surprising at all to see Trump holding the prospect of a July 9th impasse and a painfully high tariff out as a threat to push for better deals. There’s also an element of political theater here.”
Trump for weeks has sought to exert leverage over trading partners with threats to set high levies on governments he sees as being difficult. His top economic adviser, Kevin Hassett, earlier signaled agreements would be announced after the July 4 holiday and the signing of the tax and spending bill the US Senate approved.
Trump’s latest tariff comments don’t pose a major threat to Japanese stocks, said Neil Newman, head strategist at Astris Advisory Japan.
“I read from his rhetoric President Trump has run out of things to complain about,” he said. “I believe there is too much on the Japanese negotiation table for the Americans to walk away from, but we know Trump will push to the limits to get more. This is just noise.”
Source: Bloomberg
