Asia Markets Mixed, Europe Down As Tariff Concerns Persist - Global Markets Today While US Slept

On Tuesday, March 25, U.S. markets closed in green as investors reacted to mixed signals: Apple gained while Nvidia dipped, and attention turned to possible shifts in Trump’s trade policy.

Market uncertainty persists amid inflation worries, declining fiscal strength, and cautious Fed comments. The key focus now shifts to Friday’s release of the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge, the PCE index.

In economic data, Consumer confidence dipped to 92.9, missing expectations of 93.5. Home prices rose 4.7% in January, slightly below forecasts of 4.8% but higher than December’s 4.5%. New home sales climbed 1.8% to 676,000 in February, falling short of the 680,000 estimate, despite rebounding from January’s revised 6.9% drop, suggesting lingering housing market uncertainty.

Most S&P 500 sectors rose, led by consumer discretionary, communication, and financial stocks, while utilities and health care declined.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased by 0.01% to 42,587.50, the S&P 500 up 0.16% to 5,776.65, and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.47% to 18,271.86.

Asia Markets Today

• On Wednesday, Japan’s Nikkei 225 closed the session higher by 0.73% at 38,057.00, led by gains in the Power, Rubber and Chemical, Petroleum & Plastic sectors.
• Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was up 0.71% and closed at 7,999.00, led by gains in the A-REITs, Consumer Staples, and Industrials sectors.
• India’s Nifty 50 fell 0.77% to 23,486.85, while Nifty 500 was down 0.76% at 21,275.45.
• China’s Shanghai Composite declined 0.04% to 3,368.70, and the Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 rose   0.51% to 3,934.85.
• Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was up 0.60%, ending the session at 23,483.32.

Eurozone at 06:00 AM ET

• The European STOXX 50 was down 0.96%.
• Germany’s DAX declined 0.95%.
• France’s CAC slid 0.92%.
• U.K.’s FTSE 100 index traded higher by 0.03%.
• European shares fell as healthcare stocks dragged the STOXX 600 lower despite gains in energy. Caution lingered over U.S. tariffs, though Europe remains attractive amid German stimulus hopes.       

Commodities at 06:00 AM ET

• Crude Oil WTI was trading higher by 0.62% at $69.43/bbl, and Brent was up 0.62% at $72.84/bbl.
• Oil prices rose slightly on tighter supply fears after a U.S. tariff threat on Venezuelan crude buyers and a surprise U.S. inventory drop, though gains were capped by easing tensions between Russia and Ukraine.
• Natural Gas gained 0.39% to $3.982.
• Gold was trading lower by 0.09% at $3,051.95, Silver was up 0.17% to $34.248, and Copper gained 1.27% to $5.2770.

U.S. Futures at 06:00 AM ET

• Dow futures were down 0.15%, S&P 500 futures declined 0.18% and Nasdaq 100 futures slid 0.24%.
• U.S. stock futures dipped Wednesday as investors awaited clarity on Trump’s upcoming tariff measures, set for April 2.

Forex at 06:00 AM ET

The U.S. Dollar Index slid 0.01% to 104.20, USD/JPY was up 0.10% to 150.04, and USD/AUD declined 0.138% to 1.5804.

Photo by Pavel Bobrovskiy via Shutterstock