Global Stocks Rebound While Gold Hits Record High as Trump Prepares Reciprocal Tariffs

Asian stock markets bounced back on Tuesday following Wall Street’s overnight gains, while gold surged to an all-time high, and U.S. Treasury yields dropped amid heightened market anticipation of President Donald Trump’s impending reciprocal tariffs.

The Japanese yen strengthened, reflecting increased demand for traditional safe-haven assets, while the Australian dollar weakened due to disappointing retail sales data ahead of a critical Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) policy decision.

Asian Markets Gain as Investors Watch U.S. Trade Moves

After March’s market volatility, investors found some relief on the first trading day of April. The turbulence stemmed from concerns that President Donald Trump's trade policies might trigger stagflation or even push the U.S. into recession.

Traders are now nervously awaiting April 2, a day Trump has referred to as “Liberation Day”, when he is expected to announce a large-scale reciprocal tariff plan.

Regional Stock Market Performance

• Japan’s Nikkei climbed 0.7%

• South Korea’s KOSPI advanced 1.4%

• Taiwan’s benchmark index rose 1.7% after Monday’s sharp losses

• Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 1%

• China’s blue-chip index edged up 0.1%

Meanwhile, on Wall Street, the S&P 500 gained 0.55% on Monday, snapping a three-day losing streak. However, U.S. stock futures pointed 0.54% lower, indicating continued uncertainty.

“It is possible that a significant portion of last night’s rebound in the key (Wall Street) indices was attributable to month-end and quarter-end rebalancing flows, as well as short covering ahead of Trump’s Liberation Day, amid considerable uncertainty about what comes next,” said Tony Sycamore, an analyst at IG.

“U.S. equity markets are priced for a slowdown in growth and earnings. However, they are not priced for a recession, and if the U.S. economy enters recession, U.S. stock markets could easily fall by another 10%.”

Gold Prices Hit a Record High as Investors Seek Safety

Gold prices continued their rally, hitting an all-time high of $3,139.78 per ounce—marking four consecutive sessions of record-breaking gains.

“On top of general risk aversion, investors are increasing allocation to gold with the Trump administration’s trade policy threatening the dollar’s special reserve status,” said Kyle Rodda, a senior financial markets analyst at Capital.com.

With ongoing geopolitical tensions and uncertainty surrounding U.S. trade policies, gold remains a preferred hedge against market instability.

Treasury Yields Drop, Dollar Faces Mixed Performance

U.S. Treasury Bonds See Increased Demand

The demand for U.S. Treasuries surged on Tuesday, leading to a drop in benchmark 10-year yields by 4 basis points to 4.2072%.

Currency Market Overview

The U.S. dollar saw mixed movement in forex trading:

• Fell 0.19% against the Japanese yen, reaching 149.70 yen

• Strengthened 0.08% against the Canadian dollar, hitting C$1.4398

• Rose 0.08% against the Mexican peso, reaching 20.4751 pesos

• The Australian dollar slipped 0.18% to $0.6238

Investors are also closely watching the Reserve Bank of Australia’s upcoming policy decision. While the central bank is expected to hold interest rates steady, signs are emerging that conditions may warrant a rate cut in May.

Bitcoin Holds Steady While Oil Prices Dip

Cryptocurrency Market

Bitcoin remained stable at around $82,708, showing resilience despite market fluctuations.

Crude Oil Prices Retreat from Recent Highs

Oil prices declined slightly following a recent five-week peak, as traders weighed the potential economic fallout from a trade war.

• Brent crude fell 0.1% to $74.67 per barrel

• West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude slipped 0.1% to $71.37 per barrel

Both crude oil contracts jumped by approximately 2% on Monday after Trump threatened secondary tariffs on Russian crude and Iran. Additionally, tensions escalated as Trump warned of military action against Iran if no agreement was reached regarding Tehran’s nuclear program.

Market Outlook: What’s Next?

With Trump’s April 2 “Liberation Day” announcement approaching, global markets remain on edge. Investors are bracing for:

• Further stock market volatility as trade policies unfold

• Continued strength in gold and other safe-haven assets

• Potential dollar fluctuations depending on U.S. tariff decisions

• Oil market shifts amid geopolitical tensions

As uncertainty lingers, analysts expect heightened market movements in the coming days.