Market Reactions to Manufacturing Data

Investors in the Asia-Pacific region faced a challenging Friday as major stock indexes traded lower. The downturn came as the latest manufacturing sector activity reports from Australia, Japan, and China were released, alongside new data on the Japanese job market and South Korea's foreign trade.

Impact of New Tariffs

Adding to the market's unease, United States President Donald Trump signed an executive order increasing tariffs on goods from numerous countries. This move has sparked widespread pessimism among traders, further dampening market sentiment.

Index Performances

By 7:19 am CET, Japan's Nikkei 225 had fallen by 0.70%, with Australia's S&P/ASX 200 down by 0.88%. Shortly after, Hong Kong's Hang Seng lost 0.55%, and South Korea's Kospi Composite saw a significant drop of 3.80%. On the Chinese mainland, the Shanghai Composite decreased by 0.37%, and the Shenzhen Composite went down by 0.25%.

Currency Movements

In currency markets, the dollar was trading 0.12% lower against the yen, at ¥150.59150 by 7:21 am CET.