Market Reactions Across the Asia-Pacific Region

Following the announcement by United States President Donald Trump regarding the imposition of a 25% tariff on steel and aluminum imports, major stock indexes in the Asia-Pacific region showed mixed responses on Tuesday.

Index Movements

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 saw a slight increase of 0.08% at 3:27 am CET. Similarly, South Korea's Kospi Composite rose by 0.60% shortly after. However, Hong Kong's Hang Seng experienced a decline of 0.34% at 3:29 am CET. On the Chinese mainland, both the Shanghai Composite and the Shenzhen Composite recorded decreases of 0.21% and 0.64%, respectively. Notably, markets in Japan were closed for a holiday, thus unaffected by the day's trading.

Currency Impact

The dollar remained stable against the yen, trading at ¥151.9390 at 3:30 am CET, indicating a muted immediate currency impact from the tariff announcement.