Asian stocks surged on Thursday amid widespread investor relief following President Donald Trump’s announcement to halt the imposition of punitive tariffs on U.S. allies. Notably, Chinese markets showed resilience despite Trump’s move to increase duties on Beijing to 125 percent.

Stocks rallied broadly, mirroring the robust gains on Wall Street, following an announcement from the U.S. president stating he would postpone for three months actions initiated the previous week that had caused turmoil on trading floors and led to concerns about a worldwide economic downturn.

Trump said he would keep in place a basic levy of 10 percent on dozens of countries but upped the ante in his brutal trade war with superpower rival China by hitting it even harder after it retaliated in kind at the weekend.

Trump made the decision because he said investors were “jumping a little bit out of line” as markets collapsed and US Treasuries — considered the safest option in times of crisis — were also showing signs of cracking on concerns about the world’s top economy.

“People were becoming jittery, a little scared,” he said, using a sporting terminology to indicate a loss of composure.

The additional tariffs imposed on Beijing were due to “the disrespect China has demonstrated towards global markets,” according to Trump.

The president refuted the notion of making a U-turn, stating to journalists that “adaptability is necessary.”

Asian traders greeted the development positively, boosting equity markets across the area.

Hong Kong surged over four percent, marking its third consecutive day of increases following a precipitous drop of more than 13 percent on Monday, which was its biggest decline since the 1997 Asian financial crisis. Meanwhile, Shanghai rose by more than one percent.

Support for both markets has increased due to hopes that Chinese authorities will introduce new economic stimuli to counteract the impact of the tariff actions.

Data officially indicating yet another decline in consumer prices last month fueled these expectations further.

‘Fear to euphoria’

The Nikkei in Tokyo jumped over eight percent, while both Seoul and Singapore saw gains of more than five percent. Meanwhile, Sydney and Jakarta experienced increases of above four percent.

The 9.3% increase in Taipei marked its highest gain ever recorded, following Monday’s 9.7% decline, which was its steepest drop on record.

Vietnam’s shares, subjected to some of the highest tariffs, surged by 6.5%, whereas Manila and Wellington markets also showed strong gains.

The top gainers were tech companies, including Sony, Sharp, Panasonic, and SoftBank, which all saw double-digit increases. Meanwhile, airlines, automakers, and casinos also benefited from robust purchasing activity.

Apple’s suppliers saw significant gains — Hong Kong-based AAC Technologies jumped 23 percent, while in Taiwan, Hon Hai increased by nearly 10 percent.

“Asian markets are shifting gears—from dread to exuberance—thanks to Trump’s offer of a 90-day reprieve, halting the cycle of mutual tariff increases,” noted Stephen Innes at SPI Asset Management.

The president’s office acknowledged the ‘yippie’ response to his groundbreaking policies, and frankly, that encapsulates it well.”

We’ve just seen one of the greatest comebacks ever — and now, we anticipate Asian investors, similar to those from North America, stepping up to seize this opportunity.

The US Treasury yields slightly decreased following a successful sale of $38 billion in notes, as reported by Briefing.com.

This reduced stress on the bond market, which had sparked concerns that investors might be losing faith in the United States.

The chaos triggered by Trump’s trade war is presenting a challenge for the US Federal Reserve as they attempt to determine whether to lower interest rates to shield the economy or maintain higher rates to combat the inflation some believe the tariffs will exacerbate.

The minutes from the central bank’s March meeting, published on Wednesday, revealed that members expressed concern about “the bigger and wider tariff hikes than most businesses anticipated.”

That was prior to the president announcing his proposed tariffs of up to 50 percent on both allies and adversaries — which have now been delayed until July.

The minutes revealed that some decision-makers acknowledged they might encounter challenging trade-offs if inflation remained persistently high while the prospects for economic growth and job creation declined.

Oil prices edged down after a much-needed bounce of more than four percent on Wednesday. Still, both main contracts remain under pressure amid concerns about the global economy and its impact on demand.

Gold surged by approximately two percent, whereas Bitcoin gained over six percent.

Key individuals at approximately 0230 GMT

Tokyo – Nikkei 225: Up by 8.3 percent to reach 34,353.17 (break)

Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: Up 4.2% at 21,108.06

Shanghai – Aggregate: Increased by 1.6% to reach 3,236.06

Dollar/yen: FALLS to 147.00 yen from 147.82 yen on Wednesday

Euro/dollar: Increased to $1.0970 from $1.0948

Pound/dollar: Increased to $1.2825 from $1.2810

Euro/pound: INCREASED to 85.54 pence from 85.45 pence

West Texas Intermediate: Down 0.6% at $61.98 per barrel

Brent North Sea Crude: Down 0.8% at $64.96 per barrel

New York – Dow: Increased by 7.9 percent to close at 40,608.45

London – FTSE 100: fell by 2.9 percent to close at 7,679.48