Shares of South Korean autos pared losses Tuesday after U.S. President Donald Trump took aim at the country overnight, saying he would increase tariffs on Asia’s fourth-largest economy.
Trump said on Truth Social that the country’s legislature has not approved Seoul’s trade deal with Washington, and that tariffs on the South Korea will climb to 25%, from 15%.
Auto heavyweights Hyundai and Kia plunged as much as 4% and 5%, respectively, at the open. Both pared losses with Hyundai last trading 1.12% higher, while Kia was still down 1.1%.
However, the threat did not seem to dent sentiment in South Korea’s Kospi, which reversed losses to gain 2.02%, leading Asian markets. The small-cap Kosdaq was also in positive territory, climbing 1.04%.
Elsewhere, Asia-Pacific markets were also up. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 climbed 0.96% to its highest level in almost 3 months, after coming back from a holiday on Monday.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 reversed losses to trade 0.59% higher, powered by industrial and tech stocks, while the Topix rose 0.23%.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index gained 1.08%, with basic materials stocks driving the rise, while the CSI 300 on mainland China was up 0.3%.
Shares of Anta Sports in Hong Kong inched up after the company announced a $1.8 billion purchase of a 29.06% stake in sportswear giant Puma. The stock was up 1.38%.
