Donald Trump's imminent trade war has sent global stock markets stuttering ahead of his controversial tariff plans later today.
The White House confirmed yesterday the President will impose new tariffs, however it did not provide details about the size and scope of the fees on what he has called "Liberation Day."
Asian stocks struggled for direction, with Japan's Nikkei last up 0.25 per cent after hitting its lowest level since September earlier in the session. South Korea's benchmark index was down 0.6 per cent.
The Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong dropped 0.8 per cent. In China, the CSI 300 Index declined 0.1 per cent.
Asia-Pacific investment strategist at Legal & General Investment Management Ben Bennett said: "Nervousness is the dominant sentiment right now.
"Investors are hoping for some clarity, and perhaps the start of the deal making phase. But tariffs are already weighing on business sentiment, and this will probably feed through into lower global economic activity in the coming months."
Experts have also issued a "global recession" warning ahead of the imposition of new tariffs.
Chief economist at Vanguard Asset Management Jumana Saleheen told MPs yesterday: "The situation which is much more worrying is if it would expand into more of a trade war, and then everybody is doing tit-for-tat strategies, then that could escalate and lead to a downturn, a recession in major economies, it could lead to a global recession.
"That is an extreme scenario. Everyone is aware of that [risk] and they don’t really want it."
LATEST ON TRUMP'S TARIFF PLAN
French industry minister Marc Ferracci said that Europe will respond to the likely implementation of tariffs by Trump in a proportionate manner but will not escalate tensions under any circumstances.
He said: "Europe has always been on the side of negotiation and calming things down, because trade wars, you know, only produce losers."
Meanwhile, data showed US manufacturing contracted in March after growing for two straight months, while a measure of inflation at the factory gate jumped to the highest level in nearly three years amid rising anxiety over tariffs on imported goods.
A report from the Labour Department also showed on Tuesday US job openings fell in February by 194,000 to 7.568 million as uncertainty surrounding tariffs squelched demand.
Elsewhere, a senior lawmaker in Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) warned the tariff plans may spell a domestic economic crisis.
Referring to the 25 per cent auto levy that has already been announced by Trump, Itsunori Onodera said: "Especially given the breadth of the supply chain of the auto industry, I think this will become an enormous problem that will have an impact on all regions across Japan."
Managing director of investment strategy at OCBC Vasu Menon said: "Trump has called April 2 'Liberation Day' but it is unlikely that investors will truly be liberated from tariff uncertainties.
"If countries retaliate, Trump could up the ante - this possibility will probably continue to keep investors nervous."
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The White House confirmed yesterday the President will impose new tariffs, however it did not provide details about the size and scope of the fees on what he has called "Liberation Day."
Asian stocks struggled for direction, with Japan's Nikkei last up 0.25 per cent after hitting its lowest level since September earlier in the session. South Korea's benchmark index was down 0.6 per cent.
The Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong dropped 0.8 per cent. In China, the CSI 300 Index declined 0.1 per cent.
Asia-Pacific investment strategist at Legal & General Investment Management Ben Bennett said: "Nervousness is the dominant sentiment right now.
"Investors are hoping for some clarity, and perhaps the start of the deal making phase. But tariffs are already weighing on business sentiment, and this will probably feed through into lower global economic activity in the coming months."
Experts have also issued a "global recession" warning ahead of the imposition of new tariffs.
Chief economist at Vanguard Asset Management Jumana Saleheen told MPs yesterday: "The situation which is much more worrying is if it would expand into more of a trade war, and then everybody is doing tit-for-tat strategies, then that could escalate and lead to a downturn, a recession in major economies, it could lead to a global recession.
"That is an extreme scenario. Everyone is aware of that [risk] and they don’t really want it."
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French industry minister Marc Ferracci said that Europe will respond to the likely implementation of tariffs by Trump in a proportionate manner but will not escalate tensions under any circumstances.
He said: "Europe has always been on the side of negotiation and calming things down, because trade wars, you know, only produce losers."
Meanwhile, data showed US manufacturing contracted in March after growing for two straight months, while a measure of inflation at the factory gate jumped to the highest level in nearly three years amid rising anxiety over tariffs on imported goods.
A report from the Labour Department also showed on Tuesday US job openings fell in February by 194,000 to 7.568 million as uncertainty surrounding tariffs squelched demand.
Elsewhere, a senior lawmaker in Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) warned the tariff plans may spell a domestic economic crisis.
Referring to the 25 per cent auto levy that has already been announced by Trump, Itsunori Onodera said: "Especially given the breadth of the supply chain of the auto industry, I think this will become an enormous problem that will have an impact on all regions across Japan."
Managing director of investment strategy at OCBC Vasu Menon said: "Trump has called April 2 'Liberation Day' but it is unlikely that investors will truly be liberated from tariff uncertainties.
"If countries retaliate, Trump could up the ante - this possibility will probably continue to keep investors nervous."
Find Out More...