Asian Markets Track Wall Street Lower

(RTTNews) - Asian stock markets are trading mostly lower on Friday, following the broadly negative from Wall Street overnight, with some of the major markets being closed, as traders continue to assess the impact of the steeper-than-expected reciprocal tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump on U.S. trade partners. Asian markets ended mostly lower on Thursday.

Trump's "reciprocal tariff" plan calls for a baseline 10 percent tariff to be imposed on all U.S. imports except those compliant with the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement. Certain countries deemed the "worst offenders" will face much higher tariffs, with countries like Cambodia, Laos, Madagascar and Vietnam set to be charged nearly 50 percent.

China, which will face a 54 percent tariff rate when the new levies are combined with existing duties, has vowed to take countermeasures. Canada and the European Union are also preparing countermeasures. The trade war marks one of the boldest protectionist pushes in recent history that could fuel inflation and damage the global economy.

The Australian stock market is sharply lower on Friday, extending the losses in the previous session, following the broadly negative cues from Wall Street overnight. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 is falling almost 2 percent to stay just above the 7,700 level, with weakness across most sectors led by energy and technology stocks.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is losing 144.80 points or 1.84 percent to 7,714.90, after hitting a low of 7,704.60 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is down 155.40 points or 1.93 percent to 7,897.30. Australian stocks closed significantly lower on Thursday.

Among major miners, BHP Group and Rio Tinto are losing almost 1 percent each, while Mineral Resources is declining more than 5 percent and Fortescue Metals is edging up 0.4 percent.

Oil stocks are mostly lower. Origin Energy, Beach energy and Santos are slipping more than 7 percent each, while Woodside Energy is tumbling more than 8 percent.

Among tech stocks, Afterpay-owner Block is losing more than 5 percent, Zip is tumbling almost 12 percent and Xero are declining more than 2 percent, while Appen and WiseTech Global are slipping more than 6 percent each.

Among the big four banks, Commonwealth Bank is losing almost 1 percent and National Australia Bank is edging down 0.2 percent, while ANZ Banking and Westpac are declining almost 2 percent each. Gold miners are mostly higher. Evolution Mining is edging down 0.3 percent, Resolute Mining is declining more than 1 percent and Newmont is losing more than 2 percent, while Northern Star Resources is gaining almost 3 percent and Gold Road Resources is advancing more than 4 percent.

In other news, shares in Amotiv are plummeting almost 16 percent after the car accessories manufacturer warned it expects lower revenue growth and earnings this financial year.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.629 on Friday.

Extending the sharp losses in the previous session, the Japanese market is sharply lower on Friday, following the broadly negative cues from Wall Street overnight. The Nikkei 225 is falling 2.4 percent to below the 33,900 level, with weakness across most sectors led by index heavyweights, financial and technology stocks.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed the morning session at 33,818.18, down 917.75 points or 2.64 percent, after hitting a low of 33,770.29 earlier. Japanese shares ended sharply lower on Thursday.

Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is losing almost 6 percent and Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is down almost 1 percent. Among automakers, Toyota is losing more than 5 percent and Honda is also down more than 5 percent.

In the tech space, Advantest is tumbling more than 8 percent, Tokyo Electron is declining more than 3 percent and Screen Holdings is losing more than 4 percent.

In the banking sector, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial is slipping more than 9 percent, Mizuho Financial is tumbling more than 11 percent and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial is declining almost 10 percent.

Among the major exporters, Sony and Mitsubishi Electric are losing more than 4 percent each, while Panasonic is down almost 4 percent and Canon is declining more than 2 percent.

Among other major losers, Resona Holdings is plummeting almost 11 percent, while Fujikura and Renesas Electronics are tumbling more than 10 percent each. Resonac Holdings, Fukuoka Financial and Taiyo Yuden are slipping more than 9 percent each, while Chiba Bank is sliding almost 9 percent and Hitachi is declining more than 8 percent. Yokohama Rubber and Shizuoka Financial are losing almost 8 percent each, while TDK is down more than 7 percent.

Conversely, Mitsui Fudosan, Sumitomo Pharma and Nitori Holdings are gaining more than 5 percent each, while East Japan Railway is adding more than 4 percent. Kyowa Kirin, KDDI, Secom, Terumo and Daiichi Sankyo are advancing almost 4 percent each, while Chugai Pharmaceutical, Odakyu Electric Railway and Otsuka Holdings are up more than 3 percent each. ZOZO, Mitsubishi Estate and Nomura Research Institute are rising almost 3 percent each.

In economic news, the average of household spending in Japan was down 0.5 percent on year in February, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications said on Friday - standing at 290,511 yen. That beat forecasts for a decline of 0.9 percent following the 0.8 percent increase in January.

On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, household spending was up 3.5 percent - exceeding expectations for a gain of 0.5 percent following the 4.5 percent contraction in the previous month. b In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the lower 146 yen-range on Friday.

Elsewhere in Asia, New Zealand and Singapore are slipping 1.1 and 2.6 percent, respectively. South Korea and Malaysia are down 0.4 and 0.5 percent, respectively. China, Hong Kong and Taiwan are closed for Tomb Sweeping Day holiday, while Indonesia remains closed for Eid-ul-Fitr holidays.

On Wall Street, stocks plummeted during trading on Thursday amid concerns about a global trade war following President Donald Trump's tariff announcement. The sell-off dragged the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 down to their lowest levels since last August, while the Dow slumped to a nearly seven-month closing low.

The major averages saw further downside going into the close, ending the session near their worst levels of the day. The Nasdaq plummeted 1,050.44 points or 6.0 percent to 16,550.61, the S&P 500 plunged 274.45 points or 4.8 percent to 5,396.52 and the Dow tumbled 1,696.39 points or 4.0 percent to 40,545.93.

The major European markets also showed significant moves to the downside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index plummeted 3.3 percent, the German DAX Index dove by 3.0 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index tumbled by 1.6 percent.

Crude oil prices pulled back sharply on Thursday after the U.S. implemented its tariffs, while additional selling pressure came after OPEC said it would speed up previously announced increases in output. Crude for May delivery plummeted $4.76 or 6.6 percent to $66.95 a barrel.