Asia stocks rise tracking Wall St rally; Nikkei falls on Trump trade threat

Investing.com-- Most Asian stock markets rose on Tuesday, with South Korea leading gains following Wall Street’s record highs, while Japan’s Nikkei slipped after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened fresh tariffs against Tokyo.

Gains were limited as investors exercised caution ahead of Trump’s July 9 tariff deadline, when rates are set to rise from the temporary 10% until a deal is reached.

Major U.S. stock indexes saw stellar quarterly gains on Monday, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq hitting fresh record closing highs.

U.S. stock index futures also edged higher in Asian trading hours on Tuesday.

Markets brace for Trump’s July 9 tariff deadline

Regional markets rose, supported by hopes that Asian economies will secure trade agreements with President Trump ahead of the July 9 tariff deadline. 

Sentiment was also buoyed by last week’s announcement that the U.S. had finalized a trade deal with China.

A day earlier, Canada withdrew its digital services tax on tech companies to revive stalled trade talks with the Trump administration, further improving trade sentiment.

However, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that nations may still face steep tariff hikes even amid ongoing good-faith negotiations, adding that he expects a flurry of deals ahead of the deadline.

China’s Shanghai Composite index rose 0.2%, while the Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 edged up 0.1%. Data on Tuesday revealed that China’s Caixin Manufacturing PMI saw unexpected growth in June on improved trade conditions.

Markets in Hong Kong were closed for a public holiday.

South Korea’s KOSPI led gains with a 1.6% jump. The heavyweight and bellwether stock Samsung Electronics (KS:005930) rose nearly 2%.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 inched 0.2% higher, while Singapore’s Straits Times Index climbed 0.8%.

Futures for India’s Nifty 50 were largely unchanged.

Trump criticizes US-Japan trade talks, threatens tariff action

Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 1% on Tuesday, retreating from near a one-year high. The broader TOPIX index declined 0.8%.

President Trump sharply criticised ongoing trade negotiations with Japan on Monday, complaining that Tokyo refuses to import American-grown rice, despite claiming to have a domestic shortage. 

Posting on Truth Social, Trump called Japan “spoiled” for not taking U.S. rice and hinted the U.S. would send a tariff notice soon.