World shares mostly down as Trump's tariff deadline looms, while US stocks set records
World shares mostly fell on Friday even as U.S. stocks climbed further into record heights as the clock ticks on President Donald Trump's July 9 tariff deadline.
In early trading in Europe, Germany's DAX shed 0.8% to 23,730.61, while the CAC 40 in Paris fell 1.1% to 7,666.91. Britain's FTSE 100 was down 0.4% to 8,790.21. The futures for S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial average were both 0.5% lower.
In Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 recovered early losses, gaining 0.1% to 39,810.88, while South Korea's KOSPI index was fell 2% to 3,054.28.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng index lost 0.6% to 23,916.06 while the Shanghai Composite index added 0.3% to 3,472.32.
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.1% to 8,603.00 while India's Sensex index shed 0.1% to 83,148.45.
"Asian markets slipped into Friday like someone entering a dark alley with one eye over their shoulder — because while US equities danced higher on a sweet spotted post-payroll sugar rush, the mood in Asia was far less celebratory," Stephen Innes, managing partner at SPI Asset Management, wrote in a commentary.
"The reason? That familiar, twitchy unease every time Trump gets near the tariff trigger," he added.
Mizuho Bank Ltd. said countries may be receiving letters from Trump stating tariff levels as early as Friday. Countries will have to brace for volatility, it said.
On Thursday, after a report showed a U.S. job market stronger than Wall Street expected, the S&P 500 rose 0.8% and set an all-time high for the fourth time in five days. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 344 points, or 0.8%, and the Nasdaq composite gained 1%.
Many of Trump's stiff proposed taxes on imports are currently on pause, but they're scheduled to kick in next week unless Trump reaches deals with other countries to lower them.
Elsewhere Friday, U.S. benchmark crude was down 45 cents to $66.55 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, shed 53 cents to $68.27 per barrel.
The U.S. dollar slid to 144.34 Japanese yen from 144.92 yen. The euro edged higher to $1.1773 from $1.1761.
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