Asian Markets Rally As Trump Temporarily Exempts Chinese-Imported Electronics From Tariffs

Asian stock markets opened on a bullish note on April 14, 2025, a day after US President Donald Trump temporarily exempted consumer electronics, such as smartphones and computers from the steep tariffs imposed on China. The announcement sparked strong investor sentiment, especially among chip and tech-based stocks.

Asian markets are also upbeat after a positive Friday session in the US markets following US Federal Reserve’s assurances of economic support and strong earnings by major banks.

Hang Seng, Nikkei 225, KOSPI Rally Up To 2.6 Per Cent

Hong Kong-based Hang Seng rallied as much as 2.61 per cent, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 surged up to 2.40 per cent, and South Korea’s KOSPI jumped more than a per cent in today’s trade.

Tech-related stocks on Hang Seng registered strong gains. PC maker Lenovo Group jumped over 8 per cent, billionaire Jack Ma-led Alibaba surged as much as 5.7 per cent, Baidu jumped around 5.5 per cent, and Tencent Holdings surged up to 3 per cent.

From the Nikkei 225, Advantest Corp, TDK Corp, Screen, and Screen holdings are among the top gainers, each jumping over 4 per cent.

Tariffs On Chinese Semiconductors Soon

However, Trump has also signalled that he will be announcing tariffs on imported semiconductors over the next week. That means, the exemption of smartphones and computers from trade tariffs will likely be short-lived.

Earlier on Sunday, Trump’s Commerce Secretary, Howard Lutnick, said that critical tech products from China, including semiconductors, will likely face new tariffs within the next two months.

Wild Swings In US, Asian Markets Under Trump 2.0 Regime

Trump’s pendulum-like tariff decisions triggered one of the most volatile sessions in the US markets last week, where US indices saw wild swings over the week. This also had a ripple effect in the global markets.

Since Trump assumed power, Dow Jones has yielded negative returns of over 7.5 per cent, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite has corrected nearly 15 per cent, and S&P 500 has slid more than 10.5 per cent.

On the other hand, during this period, Hang Seng gained over 9 per cent, while Nikkei 225 fell over 11 per cent, and KOSPI corrected more than 2.5 per cent. In India too, the Sensex and the Nifty have remained under pressure since Trump assumed office, with both the indices sliding nearly 2 per cent each.