The Japan Times - Asian markets mixed as Trump soothes Fed fears

EUR -
AED 4.151031
AFN 80.247598
ALL 98.522497
AMD 440.676983
ANG 2.03683
AOA 1036.333768
ARS 1324.545246
AUD 1.753235
AWG 2.034242
AZN 1.925715
BAM 1.955254
BBD 2.287261
BDT 137.631579
BGN 1.955254
BHD 0.427081
BIF 3369.55937
BMD 1.130135
BND 1.46989
BOB 7.827815
BRL 6.392724
BSD 1.132784
BTN 95.735275
BWP 15.423694
BYN 3.707265
BYR 22150.636537
BZD 2.275465
CAD 1.562355
CDF 3244.616608
CHF 0.934145
CLF 0.027864
CLP 1073.13043
CNY 8.217891
CNH 8.149807
COP 4824.153313
CRC 572.840089
CUC 1.130135
CUP 29.948565
CVE 110.234228
CZK 24.915515
DJF 201.723688
DKK 7.46443
DOP 66.531427
DZD 149.637228
EGP 57.340993
ERN 16.952018
ETB 151.585884
FJD 2.549475
FKP 0.850941
GBP 0.85139
GEL 3.09701
GGP 0.850941
GHS 15.915557
GIP 0.850941
GMD 80.80897
GNF 9812.260857
GTQ 8.724564
GYD 237.693647
HKD 8.758611
HNL 29.418788
HRK 7.535063
HTG 147.848727
HUF 404.554691
IDR 18609.868588
ILS 4.068903
IMP 0.850941
INR 95.52632
IQD 1483.985738
IRR 47592.794167
ISK 146.13813
JEP 0.850941
JMD 179.679841
JOD 0.801496
JPY 163.848602
KES 146.529096
KGS 98.830698
KHR 4538.73299
KMF 491.047735
KPW 1017.036387
KRW 1582.079593
KWD 0.346545
KYD 0.944036
KZT 585.226631
LAK 24496.161771
LBP 101499.66585
LKR 339.215306
LRD 226.566753
LSL 20.853079
LTL 3.336994
LVL 0.683608
LYD 6.185273
MAD 10.503968
MDL 19.484561
MGA 5144.563869
MKD 61.512828
MMK 2372.392072
MNT 4038.466774
MOP 9.044175
MRU 45.120404
MUR 51.229425
MVR 17.4158
MWK 1964.251669
MXN 22.131707
MYR 4.816073
MZN 72.328998
NAD 20.853079
NGN 1812.408452
NIO 41.688362
NOK 11.769961
NPR 153.17624
NZD 1.900983
OMR 0.435145
PAB 1.132784
PEN 4.153141
PGK 4.696689
PHP 62.73419
PKR 318.31924
PLN 4.277518
PYG 9063.469886
QAR 4.133846
RON 4.978925
RSD 117.167292
RUB 93.46101
RWF 1598.853672
SAR 4.238098
SBD 9.425806
SCR 16.068296
SDG 678.649932
SEK 10.914054
SGD 1.46884
SHP 0.888108
SLE 25.756185
SLL 23698.337407
SOS 647.41927
SRD 41.617247
STD 23391.502773
SVC 9.912233
SYP 14692.920352
SZL 20.844181
THB 37.390543
TJS 11.724527
TMT 3.955471
TND 3.398551
TOP 2.646892
TRY 43.619796
TTD 7.681856
TWD 34.716946
TZS 3050.648396
UAH 47.296997
UGX 4149.841551
USD 1.130135
UYU 47.53673
UZS 14612.920729
VES 98.025574
VND 29389.148119
VUV 136.913075
WST 3.1399
XAF 655.773937
XAG 0.035286
XAU 0.000349
XCD 3.054245
XDR 0.815572
XOF 655.773937
XPF 119.331742
YER 276.48782
ZAR 20.780405
ZMK 10172.570869
ZMW 31.441223
ZWL 363.902853
  • RBGPF

    67.2100

    67.21

    +100%

  • CMSD

    0.0600

    22.32

    +0.27%

  • BCC

    3.4400

    96.15

    +3.58%

  • SCS

    0.2700

    10.14

    +2.66%

  • VOD

    -0.1200

    9.61

    -1.25%

  • RYCEF

    0.1300

    10.35

    +1.26%

  • CMSC

    0.0700

    22.1

    +0.32%

  • NGG

    0.0300

    71.68

    +0.04%

  • GSK

    0.3200

    39.07

    +0.82%

  • RIO

    1.1500

    59.7

    +1.93%

  • RELX

    0.9400

    55.02

    +1.71%

  • JRI

    0.0600

    13.07

    +0.46%

  • BCE

    0.0100

    21.45

    +0.05%

  • AZN

    1.9300

    72.44

    +2.66%

  • BTI

    -0.1300

    43.17

    -0.3%

  • BP

    0.2400

    28.12

    +0.85%

Asian markets mixed as Trump soothes Fed fears
Asian markets mixed as Trump soothes Fed fears / Photo: ANGELA WEISS - AFP

Asian markets mixed as Trump soothes Fed fears

Asian markets were mixed on Thursday after President Donald Trump said he had "no intention" of firing the US central bank head and made conciliatory comments on his trade war with China.

Text size:

Trump's attacks on the Federal Reserve for not cutting interest rates had raised fears that he would fire its "Mr. Too Late" chief Jerome Powell, in a major blow to its independence.

Trump's rowback on Wednesday boosted Wall Street, as did his comments that US tariffs on China were "very high" and would "come down substantially".

The broad-based S&P 500 finished 1.7 percent higher on Wednesday. European stocks also rallied, with Frankfurt gaining more than three percent.

Trump could also exempt car parts from some tariffs on China alongside those on steel and aluminum in a "destacking", the Financial Times reported.

Tokyo rose more than one percent, while Sydney added 0.6 percent and Shanghai 0.3 percent.

But Seoul fell after official data showed South Korea's economy unexpectedly contracted 0.1 percent in the first three months of 2025.

Hong Kong and Taipei were also slightly down.

"Both US equities and government bonds have staged a relief rally over the past 24 hours, as concerns about Fed independence and the trade war have eased," said Hubert de Barochez at Capital Economics.

"But the fact that the rally was sparked largely by conciliatory remarks from US President Trump -- whose rhetoric is notoriously volatile -- raises questions about its durability," de Barochez said.

On trade, Washington has imposed additional tariffs of 145 percent on a range of products from China, while Beijing has retaliated with levies of 125 percent on US goods.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told reporters on Wednesday that Washington is "not yet" speaking with Beijing on tariffs, calling the high levies not "sustainable".

Bessent also said that in its talks with Japan on tariffs, Washington had "absolutely no currency targets", after repeated comments from Trump that he wants a stronger yen.

Japan's envoy Ryosei Akazawa met Trump and other senior US officials last week, and local media reported Thursday that he will return for another round on May 1.

Nintendo shares gained as much as 5.5 percent after its president said there were "extremely high" pre-orders in Japan for its Switch 2 game console ahead of its global launch on June 5.

- Key figures at 0300 GMT -

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 1.9 percent at 34,868.63 (break)

Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.23 percent 22,022.77

Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.26 percent at 3,304.97

Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1351 from $1.1317 on Wednesday

Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3281 from $1.3257

Dollar/yen: DOWN at 142.78 from 143.49 yen

Euro/pound: UP at 85.47 from 85.34 pence

West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.05 percent at $62.24 per barrel

Brent North Sea Crude: UNCHANGED at $66.12 per barrel

New York - Dow: UP 1.1 percent at 39,606.57 (close)

London - FTSE 100: UP 0.9 percent at 8,403.18 (close)

burs-stu/tc/tym

Y.Kato--JT