Asian shares rise after Wall Street falls as Trump pressures trading
partners with new tariffs
[July 08, 2025] By
TERESA CEROJANO
Asian shares mostly rose Tuesday, after stocks on Wall Street closed
broadly lower as the White House stepped up pressure on major trading
partners to make deals before punishing tariffs imposed by the U.S. take
effect.
Japan's Nikkei 225 added 0.3% to 39,724.90 while South Korea's Kospi
surged 1.8% to 3,115.38.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng index climbed 0.7% to 24,047.40 while the Shanghai
Composite gained 0.7% to 3,497.40. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 edged 0.1%
lower to 8,590.70.
“Asian markets treated today’s fresh round of ‘maybe talks, maybe not’
as more background noise than breaking news,” Stephen Innes, managing
partner at SPI Asset Management, wrote in a commentary. “Markets didn’t
lurch because they’ve seen this show before. Tariff hike, rhetoric
spikes, and then — like clockwork — comes the sudden pivot: ‘We’re still
open to talks.’”
On Wall Street on Monday, the S&P 500 fell 0.8% for its biggest loss
since mid-June. The benchmark index remains near its all-time high set
last week.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average gave back 0.9% while the Nasdaq
composite also finished 0.9% lower, not too far from its own record
high.
The losses were widespread. Decliners outnumbered gainers by nearly 4 to
1 on the New York Stock Exchange.
Tesla tumbled 6.8% for the biggest drop among S&P 500 stocks as the feud
between CEO Elon Musk and U.S. President Donald Trump reignited over the
weekend. Musk, once a top donor and ally of Trump, said he would form a
third political party in protest over the Republican spending bill that
passed last week.
The selling in U.S. trading accelerated after the Trump administration
released letters informing Japan and South Korea that their goods will
be taxed at 25% starting on Aug. 1, citing persistent trade imbalances
with the two crucial U.S. allies in Asia.
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Trump also announced new tariff rates on Malaysia, Kazakhstan, South
Africa, Laos and Myanmar.
Just before hefty U.S. tariffs on goods imported from nearly every
country around the globe were to take effect in April, Trump postponed
the levies for 90 days in hopes that foreign governments would be more
willing to strike new trade deals. That 90-day negotiating period was
set to expire before Wednesday.
In a post on his social media platform late Sunday, Trump also said any
country that aligns itself with what he termed “the Anti-American
policies of BRICS” would be levied an added 10% tariff. BRICS member
nations include Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt,
United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia, Indonesia, and Iran. Saudi Arabia has
also been invited to join.
This latest phase in the trade war heightens the threat of potentially
more severe tariffs hanging over the global economy. Higher taxes on
imported goods could hinder economic growth, if not increase recession
risks.
Japan's Mizuho Bank Ltd, in a commentary, said the three-week extension
in the tariff deadline “is a distraction from festering, and possibly
widening, tariff risks.”
In other dealings on Tuesday, benchmark U.S. crude oil lost 18 cents to
$67.75 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, gave up 14
cents to $69.44.
The dollar was trading at 146.07 to the Japanese yen, slightly up from
146.01 yen. The euro rose to $1.1737 from $1.1714. ___ AP Business
Writer Alex Veiga contributed to this report.
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