[SINGAPORE] Markets in Asia-Pacific were muted on Tuesday (Jul 8) as US President Donald Trump announced tariff rates on 14 countries.
Trump hit trading partners such as Malaysia (25 per cent), Indonesia (32 per cent), Cambodia and Thailand (36 per cent), as well as Laos (40 per cent).
Japan and South Korea were both dealt with 25 per cent tariffs.
14 countries have been sent these letters so far, according to Reuters. Trump said these new tariffs will take effect on Aug 1, after a three-month tariff pause that was to end on Wednesday.
US markets have already slumped in response on Monday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbling more than 400 points, the S&P 500 falling about 0.8 per cent and the Nasdaq declining nearly 1 per cent.
At market open, Singapore’s Straits Times Index (STI) was trading 0.18 per cent down or 7.3 points lower at 4,024.56. Across the broader market, losers outnumbered gainers 93 to 78 with 114.93 million securities worth S$187.06 million traded.
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The trio of local banks were down. DBS lost 0.31 per cent to S$45.53. UOB was down 0.44 per cent at S$36.24, and OCBC edged down 0.12 per cent to S$16.55.
However, the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong rose 0.4 per cent to 23,993.76 in early trade. China’s CSI 300 Index, comprising stocks traded on the Shanghai and Shenzhen exchanges, also inched up 0.2 per cent to 3,974.65.
In the rest of Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 edged up 0.17 per cent, while South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.45 per cent. Australia’s ASX 200 was down 0.42 per cent.
“The expectations that Trump is once again engaged in a negotiating tactic rather than making serious tariff threats, offers hope to investors. There was no big fallout for Asian markets when trading resumed on 8 July, a day after the White House sent letters to leaders of several countries announcing blanket tariffs ranging from 25% to 40% starting 1st August,” said Vasu Menon, Managing Director, Investment Strategy, OCBC, in a note on Tuesday.
“Eventually, the possibility that the tariffs imposed will be nowhere as high as the draconian figures suggested on 2nd April, may bring relief to markets,” he added.
