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Investing.com-- Most Asian stocks ticked lower on Thursday as investors monitored the Israel-Iran ceasefire and approached the looming U.S. tariff deadline with caution, while Japanese stocks bucked the trend, rising on tech gains fueled by Nvidia’s record high overnight.
South Korean shares were the top loser, with the KOSPI index dropping over 2% amid profit taking.
Major U.S. stock indexes took a breather overnight following strong gains earlier in the week, while the Nasdaq inched higher, boosted by Nvidia’s record high amid positive sentiment around AI adoption.
U.S. stock index futures traded unchanged in Asian trading hours on Thursday.
Asia stocks lower amid tariff caution, Israel-Iran truce
Asian markets retreated on Thursday as investors balanced optimism over a holding ceasefire between Israel and Iran with growing concerns over the looming U.S. July 9 tariff deadline, while cautious Federal Reserve policy added to the uncertainty.
A ceasefire between Israel and Iran brokered by U.S. President Trump earlier this week appeared to be holding, easing fears of supply-chain disruptions that had pressured global markets.
However, market participants were cautious as they also braced for a July 9 deadline for trade deals with the U.S. Investors in Asia held back, wary that renewed tariff talks could dampen the regional export growth outlook.
Meanwhile, speaking during congressional testimony, Fed Chair Jerome Powell reiterated that interest rate cuts would wait until the inflationary impact of tariffs is clarified, noting that tariffs could push up prices beyond a one-time increase. This restraint weighed on risk-sensitive assets across the region.
China’s Shanghai Composite index edged down 0.1%, while the Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 fell 0.2%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng declined 0.5%
South Korea’s KOSPI plunged 2.2% as investors booked profits near a four-year peak. The benchmark index has risen nearly 13% this month, including Thursday’s drop.
Singapore’s Straits Times Index was largely muted, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 edged 0.2% lower.
Futures tied to India’s Nifty 50 were largely unchanged.
Tokyo bucks trend; Japan to continue trade talks with US
The Nikkei 225 index jumped 1% to a four-month high, boosted by tech stocks and the ripple effect from Nvidia’s record-setting gains on Wall Street.
Advantest Corp. (TYO:6857) jumped 3% and Tokyo Electron (TYO:8035) climbed 2.6%, while SoftBank Group (TYO:9984), a major weight in the Nikkei 225, surged around 4.2%.
The broader TOPIX index gained 0.3%.
In other news, Japan’s top trade negotiator Ryosei Akazawa said on Thursday that he will continue trade talks with the U.S. ahead of the July 9 deadline for suspended reciprocal tariffs, adding, Japan cannot accept the 25% auto tariff.