Asia-Pacific markets trade mixed as investors assess Bank of Korea rate decision, fresh Trump tariffs

Asia markets closed mostly mixed connected Thursday.

Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 slipped 0.44% to adjacent astatine 39,646.36, portion the Topix declined 0.56% to extremity the trading time astatine 2,812.34.

South Korea's Kospi added 1.58% to 3,183.23 and the small-cap Kosdaq closed 0.93% higher astatine 797.7.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 slid 0.59% to extremity the time astatine 8,589.2.

Mainland China's CSI 300 roseate 0.47% to 4,010.02.

— Lee Ying Shan

JPMorgan is turning much affirmative connected Vietnam stocks aft the country's commercialized woody announcement with the U.S., upgrading its presumption to overweight. This comes aft Vietnam became the archetypal Southeast Asian federation to onslaught a tariff woody with the U.S. astatine a 20% rate.

"This, combined with beardown economical maturation (2Q25 GDP adjacent 8%), prompts america to upgrade Vietnam to [overweight] wrong ASEAN, with a caller VN-Index base/bull people of 1,500/1,600 by twelvemonth end," analysts led by the bank's Khoi Vu wrote successful a probe note.

The Vietnam Index was trading 0.78% higher astatine 1,442.29 arsenic of Thursday, 12.45 p.m. section time.

— Lee Ying Shan

Singapore equities show since the commencement of the year

Singapore's benchmark Straits Times Index scaled to different caller precocious Thursday, notching its 4th consecutive time of gains.

The country's equities climbed 0.47% to deed a caller grounds of 4,077.41 points Thursday arsenic of 11.24 a.m., information from LSEG showed.

—Lee Ying Shan

U.S. President Donald Trump said Wednesday that the 50% tariff connected copper imports, which helium had announced the erstwhile day, volition instrumentality effect connected Aug. 1.

The determination was made aft helium received a nationalist information assessment, Trump said in a station connected Truth Social.

"I americium announcing a 50% TARIFF connected Copper, effectual August 1, 2025, aft receiving a robust NATIONAL SECURITY ASSESSMENT," Trump wrote.

"Copper is indispensable for Semiconductors, Aircraft, Ships, Ammunition, Data Centers, Lithium-ion Batteries, Radar Systems, Missile Defense Systems, and even, Hypersonic Weapons, of which we are gathering many. Copper is the 2nd astir utilized worldly by the Department of Defense."

Read the afloat communicative here.

— Victor Loh

South Korea's cardinal slope held its argumentation complaint astatine 2.5%, keeping it dependable astatine an astir three-year low.

South Korea's system contracted by 0.2% 4th connected 4th successful the archetypal 3 months of this twelvemonth owed to anemic operation enactment and softening export growth, portion it remained level connected an twelvemonth connected twelvemonth basis.

Read the afloat communicative here.

— Lim Hui Jie

Asia-Pacific banal markets kicked disconnected the trading time mixed.

Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 slipped 0.45% astatine the open, portion the Topix mislaid 0.54%. South Korea's Kospi climbed 0.24% and the small-cap Kosdaq roseate 0.44%.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was 0.51% higher.

—Lee Ying Shan

Good greeting from Singapore! Asia-Pacific markets are acceptable to unfastened mixed.

Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 was acceptable to unfastened higher, with the futures declaration successful Chicago astatine 39,925 portion its counterpart successful Osaka past traded astatine 39,910 against the index's Tuesday adjacent of 39,821.28.

Futures for Hong Kong's Hang Seng index stood astatine 23,863 pointing to a somewhat weaker unfastened compared to the HSI's past adjacent of 23,892.32.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was besides acceptable to commencement the time somewhat higher with futures tied to the benchmark astatine 8,571, compared to its past adjacent of 8,538.6.

— Lee Ying Shan

U.S. banal futures were comparatively unchanged connected Wednesday evening.

S&P 500 futures hovered astir the flatline conscionable aft 6 p.m. ET, arsenic did Nasdaq 100 futures. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were likewise flat.

— Sean Conlon

The Nasdaq Composite closed astatine an all-time grounds precocious connected Wednesday afternoon.

The tech-heavy scale roseate 0.94%, ending astatine 20,611.34. The S&P 500 added 0.61%, finishing astatine 6,263.26. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 217.54 points, oregon 0.49%, and settled astatine 44,458.30.

— Lisa Kailai Han