Following US Jobs Surprise, Stocks Rise & Korea Jumps – Asia Market Wrap

Asian equities climbed for the first time in four days after statistics indicated the US labour market is holding up, soothing concerns that Trump’s tariff battle is driving the global economy into a slowdown.

A regional gauge rose 0.8%, while South Korea’s Kospi Index soared 2.5% after the country elected a new president, capping six months of political turmoil. The Dollar fell 0.1%, and the 10-year Treasury yield dropped 1 bps to 4.44%. Equity-index futures for the US were barely changed, while those for European shares increased 0.2%. Asian chip stocks followed their US counterparts higher on recovering AI commerce.

Just days before the US payrolls data, an unexpected spike in job vacancies boosted market confidence, propelling the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 higher. That helped to mitigate investor concerns after the Paris-based OECD warned Trump’s hostile trade policies have driven the global economy into a slowdown, with the US among the hardest hurt.

In Asian corporate news, Toyota shares slumped as much as 13% – the most in nine months – after a privatization deal. The proposal drew sharp criticism from investors and analysts, who say the plan significantly undervalues the company. Separately, Trump raised steel and aluminium tariffs to 50% from 25%, following through on a pledge to boost US import taxes to help domestic manufacturers. Trump cast the move, which took effect at 12:01 AM Washington time on Wednesday, as necessary to protect national security. In other commodities, oil has stabilised after increasing for two days.