On Wednesday morning (23 July, 9:22 AM, GMT+7, Bangkok time), most major indices in Asia Pacific exhibited an upward trend as U.S. President Donald Trump announced trade agreements with Japan and the Philippines.
Trump revealed on his Truth Social platform that the U.S. had finalized a sweeping trade deal featuring a 15% tariff on Japanese exports to the U.S. The deal, which Trump touted as the “largest ever” with Japan, also includes a commitment from Tokyo to invest $550 billion in the United States and open its markets for American vehicles, rice, and other agricultural goods. Trump claimed the U.S. would receive 90% of profits from the agreement and that the pact could generate hundreds of thousands of American jobs.
Separately, Trump stated that discussions with Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. at the White House concluded with a new trade pact that would make the Philippines an open market with zero tariffs on U.S. goods, but with Manila paying a 19% tariff. He also mentioned plans for closer military cooperation, although Philippine officials have yet to confirm the deal.
Japan’s NIKKEI soared by 2.78% to 40,880.86. Australia’s ASX 200 rose by 0.56% to 8,725.6, while South Korea’s KOSPI slid by 0.05% to 3,168.32.
As for stocks in China, Shanghai’s SSEC grew by 0.4% to 3,596.24. Hong Kong’s HSI surged by 0.62% to 25,286.79, and Shenzhen’s SZI increased by 0.24% to 11,126.14.
The U.S. stock markets were mixed on Tuesday as the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) gained 0.4% to 44,502.44. S&P 500 climbed by 0.06% to 6,309.62, while NASDAQ fell by 0.39% to 20,892.69. VIX declined by 0.9% to 16.5.
As for commodities, oil prices settled lower on Tuesday, pressured by diminishing prospects for a trade agreement between the U.S. and Europe. This sparked concerns about a potential economic slowdown in the world’s largest oil markets. Brent futures lost 62 cents or 0.9% to $68.59 a barrel, and the August West Texas Intermediate (WTI) dropped 99 cents or 1.47% and expired at $66.21 per barrel.
This morning, Brent futures expanded 28 cents or 0.41% to $68.87 a barrel, and the September WTI futures escalated 25 cents or 0.38% to $65.56 per barrel.
Meanwhile, gold futures contracted by 0.26% to $3,434.9 per Troy ounce.
