Stocks in Japan and other Asian nations rebounded strongly on Thursday after U.S. President Donald Trump’s stunning reversal on sweeping reciprocal tariffs.
Trump on Wednesday announced a 90-day pause on the most onerous new tariffs on imports to the United States for every country except China.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 was up 8.3% in morning trade on Thursday while in Seoul, the Kospi was up over 5%. In Australia, the ASX 200 jumped more than 6%.
Masayuki Kubota from Rakuten Securities in Japan called Trump’s announcement “a wonderful big surprise.”
The Japanese yen, seen as a haven, climbed by 0.64% against the greenback, to ¥146.83 to the dollar.
Japanese auto giant Toyota’s share price rose almost 10% while rival Honda climbed more than 8%.
Trump’s tariffs of 25% on car imports remainsin place however.
Chip-related technology firms also recovered strongly, with Advantest up 15% and Screen Holdings 10.5% higher in Tokyo, while SK Hynix soared more than 12% in Seoul.
On Wall Street on Wednesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average soared to close nearly 8% higher while the Nasdaq rose 12.2% to notch its best day in 24 years.
“Investors across Asia and beyond are breathing a sigh of relief,” said Frederic Neumann, chief Asia economist at HSBC Holdings. “The postponement of reciprocal tariffs by the U.S. allows more time for negotiations. For export-centered Asian economies this is especially important, given the growth impact steep U.S. tariffs would have had.”
Concerns over an escalating trade war and its impact on the global economy have toppled stock markets, sending Japan’s blue-chip Nikkei gauge into a bear market. The broader Topix index was down more than 10% since the tariffs were announced, through Wednesday.
