Asian stocks edge higher amid US tariff uncertainty

Asian shares inched higher Monday in cautious trade as investors awaited clarity on U.S. President Donald Trump’s plan for tariffs on Chinese goods. Trading volumes remained low as markets around the region paused to assess the latest signals from Washington and Beijing.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index rose 0.1% to close at 21,995.82. On the mainland, Shanghai’s Composite Index was nearly flat at 3,294.02. Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 added 0.4%, finishing at 35,863.60, and South Korea’s Kospi edged up 0.1% to 2,5549.19. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.8%, ending at 8,028.20, and Taiwan’s Taiex advanced 0.6%.

U.S. stock futures drifted lower, while oil prices held near flat, as uncertainty persisted over whether formal talks on tariff cuts would take place. 

President Trump said he was “actively negotiating” with Chinese officials over duties, but Chinese authorities and U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent both maintained that no direct discussions have begun.

The mixed performance in Asia came after Wall Street closed with gains on Friday, as Big Tech stocks powered a late rally. The S&P 500 rose 0.7% to 5,525.21, extending a three-day rebound that pulled it within 10.1% of its record high earlier this year. 

The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite led U.S. benchmarks higher with a 1.3% advance to 17,382.94, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average inched up 0.1% to 40,113.50.

Alphabet shares climbed 1.7% in their first session after Google’s parent company said late Thursday that first-quarter profit jumped 50% from a year earlier, well above analysts’ forecasts. Nvidia also contributed to the S&P 500’s gain, rising 4.3% after reporting better-than-expected results and upbeat guidance for its chip business. 

Trump says he’s on track to finalize new trade agreements

President Trump told reporters at the White House that he remained on track to finalize several new trade agreements in the coming weeks, but he also described it as “physically impossible” to complete all the meetings he would like to hold. His back-and-forth signals on tariffs have left businesses scrambling to adjust supply chains and temper spending plans amid the threat of sudden policy shifts.

On Friday, roughly 60% of S&P 500 stocks fell, including Eastman Chemical, which tumbled 6.2% after issuing a profit forecast for the spring that came in below analysts’ estimates. A growing number of companies across multiple industries have pointed to the uncertainty around tariffs as a key reason for pulling back on financial guidance for the year ahead.

Investors hope that if Trump rolls back some of his tougher tariffs on imports, he may stave off the recession many see as a likely outcome of an extended trade war. Yet the repeated cycle of threats may be prompting both households and businesses to hold off on big purchases and postpone long-term investments.

A report from the University of Michigan on Friday showed that U.S. consumer sentiment fell in April, though not as steeply as economists had feared. Its gauge of expectations for future conditions dropped 32% since January, marking the largest three-month decline in percentage terms since the 1990 recession.

In commodity markets on Monday, U.S. benchmark crude for June delivery fell 25 cents to $63.27 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, the international standard for oil prices, slipped 24 cents to $66.04 a barrel.

Currency moves were modest in early Asian trade. The U.S. dollar rose to 143.62 Japanese yen from 143.60 yen, while the euro dipped to $1.1358 from $1.1366.

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