World shares slip as investors cope with uncertainty over tariffs, await
US jobs report
[March 07, 2025] By
ELAINE KURTENBACH
BANGKOK (AP) — World shares were mostly lower on Friday, with Tokyo’s
benchmark closing down more than 2% after a sell-off on Wall Street.
A report was due later Friday from the U.S. Labor Department on how many
workers U.S. employers hired last month. Economists are expecting to see
an acceleration in hiring for February.
Germany's DAX lost 1.3% to 23,122.31, while the CAC 40 in Paris declined
0.6% to 8,149.37. Britain's FTSE 100 slipped 0.2% to 8,662.65.
The future for the S&P 500 gained 0.4%, while that for the Dow Jones
Industrial Average was up 0.2%.
Bitcoin was trading near $89,230, down 1.7%, according to CoinDesk,
after President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday
establishing a government reserve of bitcoin, a key marker in the
cryptocurrency’s journey towards possible mainstream acceptance.
China reported slower than expected trade for January-February, with
exports growing just 2.3% and imports sinking 8.4%, the government said.
China's trade data for the first two months of the year are usually
combined to make up for distortions from Lunar New Year holidays.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 fell 2.2% to 36,887.17 on heavy selling of
technology related shares. Computer chip-maker Tokyo Electron's shares
dropped 3.1% and testing equipment maker Advantest gave up 2.3%. Both
saw steep drops in their U.S.-listed shares overnight.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng reversed early gains, dropping 0.6% to 24,231.30,
while the Shanghai Composite index handed back 0.3% to 3,372.55.
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 tumbled 1.8% to 7,948.20. South Korea's
Kospi fell 0.5% to 2,563.48 after a court ordered impeached President
Yoon Suk Yeol to be released from jail, more than a month after he was
arrested and indicted over his short-lived imposition of martial law.
The Taiex in Taiwan declined 0.6%.
India's Sensex edged 0.2% higher, while the SET in Bangkok gained 0.9%.
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 On Thursday, U.S. stocks fell after
President Donald Trump offered another temporary reprieve from his
25% tariffs on many goods imported from Mexico and Canada,
underscoring the uncertainty the tariffs have created for the global
economy. Investors showed little enthusiasm, unlike the bounce
stocks got the prior day from his giving a one-month exemption
specifically for automakers.
The S&P 500 tumbled 1.8%, resuming its slide after a mini-recovery
from the prior day clawed back some of its sharp drop over recent
weeks. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 1%, while the Nasdaq
composite tumbled 2.6%, finishing more than 10% below its record set
in December.
Stocks have been buoyed by hopes that Trump may be using tariffs as
a negotiating tactic rather than a permanent policy and that he may
avoid a worst-case trade war that grinds down economies and sends
inflation higher.
But Trump is still pressing ahead with other tariffs scheduled to
take effect April 2. And the dizzying back-and-forth moves on
tariffs is amping up uncertainty. U.S. businesses are already saying
they’re confronting “chaos” because of all the uncertainty coming
out of Washington. while households are bracing for higher
inflation.
A solid job market and solid spending by U.S. households have been
linchpins in preventing a recession.
In other dealings early Friday, U.S. benchmark crude oil bounced
back, gaining 82 cents to $67.18 per barrel. Brent crude, the
international standard, advanced 87 cents to $70.33 per barrel.
The U.S. dollar fell to 147.35 Japanese yen from 147.98 yen. Rising
labor costs have reinforced expectations that the Japanese central
bank may raise its benchmark interest rate soon to counter surging
inflation.
“Japan’s trade unions are requesting an even larger pay hike in this
year’s spring wage negotiations than they did a year ago and we
expect employers to comply,” Marcel Thieliant of Capital Economics
said in a report.
The euro rose to $1.0861 from $1.0786, gaining after the European
Central Bank cut interest rates Thursday, as expected.
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