On Wednesday morning (30 July, 9:23 AM, GMT+7, Bangkok time), indices in Asia Pacific traded mixed as U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick confirmed there would be no postponement of President Donald Trump’s looming deadline to activate significant tariffs on trading allies. Meanwhile, negotiations with Beijing are moving forward independently of the broader tariff timeline.
Any formal extension of the current tariff suspension between Washington and Beijing remains uncertain, pending President Trump’s approval, according to comments from U.S. trade officials on Tuesday. These statements followed the conclusion of a third round of top-level U.S.-China trade discussions in Stockholm.
In Australia, the country’s inflation in the second quarter fell to 2.1% year-on-year, marking the lowest point since March 2021 and coming in below economists’ expectations of 2.2%. The figure narrowly hovers above the Reserve Bank of Australia’s 2% lower target. On a quarterly basis, prices rose just 0.7%, less than the prior period and forecasts in the Reuters poll of 0.9% and 0.8%, respectively.
The Monetary Authority of Singapore left its monetary policy unchanged, warning that the city-state’s strong first-half growth in 2025 will likely ease later in the year due to global trade and geopolitical risks. The central bank flagged particular vulnerability in trade-related sectors and noted persistent uncertainty heading into 2026.
South Korea’s KOSPI rose by 0.7% to 3,253.11. Australia’s ASX 200 grew by 0.61% to 8,757.6, while Japan’s NIKKEI slid by 0.13% to 40,620.94.
As for stocks in China, Hong Kong’s HSI fell by 0.34% to 25,437.11. Shenzhen’s SZI dropped by 0.14% to 11,273.15, while Shanghai’s SSEC surged by 0.51% to 3,628.27.
The U.S. stock markets edged down on Tuesday as the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) declined by 0.46% to 44,632.99. NASDAQ lost 0.38% to 21,098.29, and S&P 500 decreased by 0.3% to 6,370.86. VIX jumped by 6.32% to 15.98.
As for commodities, oil prices settled higher on Tuesday, buoyed by renewed U.S. pressure on Russia regarding its invasion of Ukraine and rising hopes that tensions from the trade dispute between Washington and its key partners were easing. Brent futures increased $2.47 or 3.53% to $72.51 a barrel, and the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) added $2.50 or 3.75% to $69.21 per barrel.
This morning, Brent futures escalated 12 cents or 0.17% to $72.63 a barrel, and the WTI futures expanded 4 cents or 0.06% to $69.25 per barrel.
Meanwhile, gold futures climbed by 0.06% to $3,325.9 per Troy ounce.
