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Asia-Pacific markets are set to open lower after U.S. President Donald Trump announced higher tariffs on 14 trading partners, including Japan and South Korea.
Goods exported to the U.S. from Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Kazakhstan and Tunisia are now set to face 25% tariffs starting Aug. 1, according to the letters Trump posted on Truth Social.
Other Asia-Pacific markets facing higher tariffs include Indonesia, which will be hit with a 32% excise duty, Bangladesh, which was slapped with a 35% duty, as well as Cambodia and Thailand, which are set for 36% tariff rates, the president’s letters indicated.
Meanwhile, imports from Laos and Myanmar will face a 40% duty, letters Trump posted on Truth Social showed.
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 was set to open lower, with the futures contract in Chicago at 39,455 while its counterpart in Osaka last traded at 39,330, against the index’s Monday close of 39,587.68.
Futures for Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index stood at 23,886 pointing to a marginally weaker open compared to the HSI’s last close of 23,887.83.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 is also set to start the day lower with futures tied to the benchmark at 8,526, compared to its last close of 8,589.30. The Reserve Bank of Australia is expected to cut interest rates by 25 basis points to 3.6% when its two-day policy meeting concludes later in the day.
— CNBC’s Kevin Brueninger, Lisa Kailai Han and Sarah Min contributed to this report.
