Asia Mixed, Europe Up As Trump's Tariff Plans Sparks Market Caution; Gold Hits 11-Week High - Global Markets Today While US Slept

On Tuesday, January 21st, U.S. markets closed mixed, with the S&P 500 and Dow reaching month-highs as investors welcomed a restrained approach to tariffs in President Trump’s initial actions. While concerns about trade policy persist, markets were buoyed by hopes for a more strategic, negotiable approach to tariffs.

Most sectors on the S&P 500 closed higher on Tuesday, with notable gains in industrials, real estate, and health care, reflecting broad market strength. However, energy stocks diverged from the overall positive trend, ending the session lower amid sector-specific pressures.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 1.24% and closed at 44,025.81, the S&P 500 closed higher by 0.88% at 6,049.24, and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.64% to finish at 19,756.78.

Aisa Markets Today

• On Wednesday, Japan’s Nikkei 225 closed higher by 1.58% at 39,615.50, led by gains in the Precision Instruments, Manufacturing and Textile sectors.
• Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.33%, ending the session at 8,429.80, led by gains in the IT, Gold, and Industrials sectors.
• India’s Nifty 50 closed higher by 0.58% at 23,159.30, while the Nifty 500 declined 0.15%, closing at 21,400.80.
• China’s Shanghai Composite declined 0.89% and closed at 3,213.62, and the Shenzhen CSI 300 slid 0.93%, finishing the day at 3,797.02.
• Hong Kong Hang Seng closed the session lower by 1.63% at 19,778.77.

Eurozone at 05:30 AM ET

• The European STOXX 50 was up 0.83%.
• Germany’s DAX rose 1.13%.
• France’s CAC rose 0.77%.
• U.K.’s FTSE index 100 traded higher by 0.24%.
• European stocks rose modestly Wednesday amid cautious sentiment on trade threats from Trump’s administration. The focus remained on Davos, ECB rate cuts, EasyJet’s recovery, AI investments, and oil price drops due to U.S. output plans.

Commodities at 05:30 AM ET

• Crude Oil WTI was trading higher by 0.58% at $76.27/bbl, and Brent was up 0.49% at $79.70/bbl.
• Oil prices fell further Wednesday as markets reacted to Trump’s energy emergency declaration, plans to maximize U.S. production, and potential tariffs on Canada and Mexico amid mixed global demand signals.
• Natural Gas gained 0.53% to $3.776.
• Gold was trading higher by 0.49% at $2,772.71, Silver was up 0.42% to $31.628, and Copper fell 0.24% to $4.3305.
• Gold prices rose to an 11-week high amid safe-haven demand driven by tariff uncertainties under Trump’s administration, while copper prices dropped on weaker demand prospects and stronger dollar concerns.

U.S. Futures at 05:30 AM ET

Dow futures were up 0.13%, S&P 500 futures rose 0.40% and Nasdaq 100 futures gained 0.78%.

Forex at 05:30 AM ET

• The U.S. Dollar Index declined 0.14% to 107.80, USD/JPY gained 0.14% to 155.71, and USD/AUD declined 0.26% to 1.6897.
• The dollar hovered near two-week lows amid uncertainty over Trump’s tariff plans, with mixed currency movements reflecting cautious sentiment.

Photo by Pavel Bobrovskiy via Shutterstock