Asian shares were mostly lower Tuesday after US markets were closed for Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a national holiday.
Tokyo: Asian shares were mostly lower Tuesday after US markets were closed for Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a national holiday.
US future were down sharply after most European benchmarks sank on Monday. Oil prices were flat.
World shares took a hit after US President Donald Trump threatened to slap a 10% extra tariff on imports from eight European countries, provoking a backlash from important trading partners that invest heavily in the US.
Tokyo’s benchmark Nikkei 225 lost 1.1% to 52,988.24 after Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi called a snap election for Feb. 8.
The yields on Japan government bonds have been surging after Takaichi indicated she planned to dissolve parliament and hold an election, aiming to capitalize on her strong public opinion ratings. She also has proposed temporarily suspending the food tax.
Expectations that Takaichi will take a renewed electoral mandate to raise government spending have revived worries over Japan’s national finances, pushing the yield sharply higher, while prices of such investments declined.
