World markets rebounded sharply on Thursday, with Japan’s benchmark jumping more than 9% as investors welcomed U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to put his latest tariff hikes on hold for 90 days, though he excluded China from the reprieve.
In early trading, Germany’s DAX initially gained more than 8%. By midmorning, they were up 5.3% at 20,720.86, while France's CAC 40 in Paris gained 5% to 7,204.23. Britain's FTSE 100 surged 4.0% to 7,983.37.
Chinese shares saw more moderate gains, given yet another jump in tariffs each side imposes on each other’s exports.
The future for the S&P 500 was down 2.1%, while the contract for the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 1.6%.
Analysts had expected the global comeback given that U.S. stocks had one of their best days in history on Wednesday as investors registered their relief over Trump’s decision.
"Everything is still very volatile because with Donald Trump, you don’t know what to expect. This is a big uncertainty in the market. The threat of recession has not faded," said Francis Lun, chief executive of Geo Securities.
In Asia, Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 jumped 9.1% to finish at 34,609.00, zooming upward as soon as trading began.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 soared 4.5% to 7,709.60. South Korea’s Kospi gained 6.6% to 2,445.06. Hong Kong's Hang Seng added 2.1% to 20,681.78. The Shanghai Composite rose 1.2% to 3,223.64.
Investors went "from fear to euphoria,” Stephen Innes, managing partner at SPI Asset Management, said in a commentary.
"It’s now a manageable risk, especially as global recession tail bets get unwound, and most of Asia’s exporters breathe a massive sigh of relief,” he said, referring to the tariffs on China, which Trump has kept.
On Wednesday, the S&P 500 surged 9.5%, an amount that would count as a good year for the market and its third-best day since 1940.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average shot to a gain of 2,962 points, or 7.9%. The Nasdaq composite leaped 12.2%.
Markets had been sinking earlier in the day on worries that Trump’s trade war could drag the global economy into a recession. But then came the posting on social media that investors worldwide had been waiting and wishing for.
"I have authorized a 90-day PAUSE," Trump declared, saying more than 75 countries are negotiating on trade and not retaliating against his latest increases in tariffs. China was a huge exception, with Trump saying tariffs are increasing to 125% against its products.
However, the trade war is not over, and an escalating battle between the world’s two largest economies can create plenty of damage. U.S. stocks are also still below where they were just a week ago.
Wall Street also got a boost from a relatively smooth auction of U.S. Treasurys on Wednesday. Earlier jumps in Treasury yields had indicated increasing levels of stress and Trump said he had been watching the bond market "getting a little queasy.”
Higher yields on the Treasury put pressure on the stock market and pushed upward rates for mortgages and other loans for U.S. households and businesses. U.S. Treasury yields have historically dropped – not risen – during volatile times because the bonds are usually seen as some of the safest possible investments.
This week’s sharp rise had brought the yield on the 10-year Treasury back to where it was in late February.
After approaching 4.50% in the morning, the 10-year yield pulled back to 4.34% following Trump’s pause and the Treasury’s auction.
By early Thursday, it was trading at 4.28%, up from 4.26% late Tuesday and from just 4.01% late last week.
In energy trading, benchmark U.S. crude fell $1.62 to $60.73 a barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, declined $1.67 to $63.81 a barrel.
The U.S. dollar fell to 146.06 Japanese yen in currency trading from 147.77 yen. The euro cost $1.1052, up from $1.0951.
