Asian Markets Mixed Amid Tariff Worries

(RTTNews) - Asian stock markets are trading mixed on Wednesday, following the mixed cues from Wall Street overnight, as traders are reluctant to make significant moves amid the lingering uncertainty about US trade policy after US President Donald Trump delayed the reciprocal tariff deadline until August 1. Asian markets closed mostly higher on Tuesday.

Trump also announced a 50 percent tariff on copper imports, hinted at a potential 200 percent tariff on pharmaceuticals, and an additional 10 percent ltariff on BRICS nations and their allies, marking a new phase in his aggressive trade policy.

Traders also look ahead to the release of the minutes of the US Fed's latest monetary policy meeting on Wednesday. It may shed light on the outlook for interest rates ahead of the central bank's next meeting on July 29-30. CME Group's FedWatch Tool is currently indicating a 95.3 percent chance the Fed will leave rates unchanged this month.

Australian shares are trading modestly lower on Wednesday, reversing the slight gains in the previous session, with the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 staying below the 8,600 level, following the mixed cues from Wall Street overnight, with weakness in financial and technology stocks partially offset by gains in mining and energy stocks.

Financial stocks are weak after the Reserve Bank of Australia's unexpected decision to hold interest rates at 3.85 percent.

US President Donald Trump also ramped up his protectionist trade war by threatening 50 percent tariffs on copper imports, which is expected to hit mining giants BHP and Rio Tinto who jointly own the Escondida mine in Chile, which is the world's largest producer of copper concentrates and cathodes. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is losing 26.70 points or 0.31 percent to 8,564.40, after hitting a low of 8,531.40 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is down 26.80 points or 0.30 percent to 8,801.90. Australian stocks ended slightly higher on Tuesday.

Among major miners, BHP Group is edging up 0.4 percent and Mineral Resources is gaining almost 2 percent, while Rio Tinto and Fortescue metals are adding almost 1 percent each.

Oil stocks are mostly higher. Origin Energy and Beach energy are advancing more than 1 percent each, while Woodside Energy is gaining almost 1 percent. Santos is edging down 0.1 percent.

In the tech space, Afterpay owner Block is declining almost 2 percent and Xero is down almost 1 percent, while Zip and Appen are slipping more than 2 percent each. WiseTech Global is gaining almost 1 percent.

Among the big four banks, ANZ Banking, Commonwealth Bank and National Australia bank are edging up 0.1 to 0.4 percent each, while Westpac is gaining almost 1 percent. Among gold miners, Evolution Mining and Resolute Mining are tumbling more than 8 percent each, while Northern Star Resources is declining almost 4 percent, Newmont is slipping more than 5 percent and Gold Road Resources is losing almost 1 percent.

In other news, shares in Lifestyle Communities are plummeting almost 35 percent after the retirement communities company was hit by a tribunal decision that found its lucrative deferred management fees, or exit fees, charged to residents were invalid under state tenancy laws.

In economic news, the total number of building permits issued in Australia was up a seasonally adjusted 3.2 percent on month in May, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said on Wednesday - coming in at 15,212. That was in line with expectations following the 4.1 percent decline in April. On a yearly basis, building permits climbed 6.5 percent - missing forecasts for 8.0 percent and down from 12.0 percent in the previous month.

Permits for private sector houses rose 0.5 percent on month and 3.4 percent on year to 9,454, while permits excluding houses jumped 11.3 percent on month and 11.9 percent on year to 5,571. The value of total residential building rose 3.6 percent to A$9.28 billion, while the value of total non-residential building fell 22.4 percent to A$6.16 billion.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.653 on Wednesday.

The Japanese stock market is slightly lower on Wednesday after opening in the green, reversing the gains in the previous session, following the mixed cues from Wall Street overnight. The Nikkei 225 is staying below the 39,700 level, with a mixed performance is most sectors.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed the morning session at 39,677.42, down 11.39 points or 0.03 percent, after touching a high of 39,971.06 and a low of 39,573.34 earlier. Japanese stocks ended modestly higher on Tuesday.

Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is gaining more than 1 percent, while Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is losing almost 1 percent. Among automakers, Honda is adding more than 3 percent and Toyota is gaining more than 2 percent.

In the tech space, Advantest is declining more than 1 percent and Tokyo Electron is losing almost 1 percent, while Screen Holdings is edging up 0.4 percent.

In the banking sector, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial and Mizuho Financial are gaining almost 1 percent each.

Among the major exporters, Canon is edging up 0.5 percent and Mitsubishi Electric is gaining almost 1 percent, while Panasonic and Sony are losing almost 1 percent each.

Among other major losers, Fujitsu is losing more than 4 percent, while Konami Group and Nissan Motor are declining almost 4 percent each. Furukawa Electric is down more than 3 percent, while Sumitomo Electric Industries and Fujikura are slipping almost 3 percent each.

Conversely, Omron is soaring 7.5 percent, Sumitomo Pharma is gaining more than 6 percent and Sumco is adding more than 5 percent, while Casio Computer and Nissan Chemical are advancing almost 5 percent each. Renesas Electronics is up almost 4 percent and Comsys Holdings is rising more than 3 percent, while Idemitsu Kosan and ENEOS Holdings are gaining almost 3 percent each.

In economic news, the M2 money stock was up 0.9 percent on year in June, the Bank of Japan said on Wednesday - coming in at 1,268.4 trillion yen. That topped expectations for an annual increase of 0.2 percent and was up from 0.6 percent in May.

The M3 money stock rose 0.4 percent to 1,616.2 trillion yen, accelerating from 0.2 percent in the previous month. The L money stock was up 1.5 percent for the second straight month, this time coming in at 2,204.8 trillion yen.

In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the higher 146 yen-range on Wednesday.

Elsewhere in Asia, China, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan and Indonesia are higher by between 0.3 and 0.4 percent each, while New Zealand, Hong Kong and Malaysia are lower by between 0.1 and 0.8 percent each.

On the Wall Street, stocks showed a lack of direction over the course of the trading day on Tuesday following the sharp pullback seen during Monday's session. The major averages spent the day bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line before eventually closing narrowly mixed.

While the tech-heavy Nasdaq inched up 5.95 points or less than a tenth of a percent to 20,418.46, the S&P 500 edged down 4.46 points or 0.1 percent to 6,225.52 and the Dow fell 165.60 points or 0.4 percent to 44,240.76.

Meanwhile, the major European markets moved to the upside on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index climbed 0.5 percent, the German DAX Index and the French CAC 40 Index both increased by 0.6 percent.

Crude oil prices moved higher on Tuesday on concerns over disruptions to the oil supply lines due to Houthi attacks. West Texas Intermediate crude for August delivery closed up by $0.40 at $68.33 per barrel.