Global markets today: Nikkei, Hang Seng lead gains in Asian markets on hopes of easing US-China trade tensions

Asian stocks surged alongside Wall Street on Wednesday after Donald Trump stated he had "no intention" of dismissing the Federal Reserve chair and announced significant cuts to the hefty tariffs on China.

Global markets, already shaken by the trade war, were hit harder earlier in the week by concerns that the US president might seek to remove central bank chief Jerome Powell for not reducing interest rates.

In today's market performance, the Tokyo's Nikkei 225 saw a notable increase, rising by 1.7 percent to reach 34,808.80. Similarly, the Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index also climbed by 1.7 percent, settling at 21,928.58.

China's Shanghai Composite experienced a slight dip, falling by 0.1 percent to 3,295.44. South Korea's main index KOSPI, saw a strong performance, rising by 1.2%.

Nevertheless, Trump sought to ease those concerns on Tuesday, stating, "I have no intention of firing him." He further remarked, "I would like to see him take more action regarding his plan to lower interest rates — now is the perfect time to do so."

US stock market today

Wall Street continued its overnight recovery, with S&P 500 futures rising 1.8% and Nasdaq futures climbing 2.0%.

Positive earnings reports boosted sentiment, and even Tesla saw a 5% rebound after hours, despite missing forecasts.

The dollar also gained back some of its recent sharp losses, rising 0.8% against the Japanese yen to 142.72, moving away from a seven-month low of 139.89.It also rose 0.8% against the Swiss franc to 0.8262, while the euro dipped 0.6% to $1.1348.

Longer-term Treasuries saw a rally as Trump’s shift on Powell appeared to reduce concerns about the credibility of U.S. monetary and fiscal policies.

Fed fund futures faced selling pressure as investors reduced their expectations for rate cuts by year-end to approximately 81 basis points.

Tariffs are still viewed as a drag on the global economy, with the International Monetary Fund downgrading its growth forecasts for the U.S., China, and most other nations on Tuesday.

However, a general improvement in risk sentiment allowed oil prices to recover some of their significant losses, posting gains of around 1% on Tuesday.

(With inputs from agencies)

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