Japan Indexes Advance Ahead of US-Japan Trade Negotiations Later This Week

Akira Ito
15 Apr, 2025
Tokyo

Japan's market indexes advanced in Tokyo, tracking gains in overnight trading in New York amid ongoing U.S. tariff turmoil.

The Nikkei 225 Stock Average advanced 1%, and the broader TOPIX index gained 1.2% after the Trump administration announced yet another change in its trade policy. 

Stocks advanced in Monday's trading after the U.S. paused country-specific tariffs on smartphones, computers, and chips but also cautioned that additional tariffs may be imposed at a later date. 

In addition, White House administration officials signaled that the U.S. may announce the pause of 25% tariffs on automobile imports as early as this week.

The Trump administration's credibility is very low while the officials promote the benefits of tariffs in reviving the manufacturing sector but at the same time negotiate with its trading partners to lower tariffs in exchange for other concessions. 

With the Trump administration's plan to keep the trade policy uncertainty high, few businesses will take a plunge in shifting their manufacturing operations to the U.S.  

Investors hoped that the US-Japan trade negotiations later this week will succeed in finalizing tariffs and rules of engagement and provide certainty for the next two years. 

 

Japan Indexes and Stocks 

The Nikkei 225 Stock Average gained 1% to 34,313.19, and the broader TOPIX index advanced 1.2% to 2,517.80. 

Automobile manufacturing-related companies traded higher on speculation that the U.S. is likely to pause 25% tariffs on imports for the next 90 days.

Toyota Motor gained 4.8% to ¥2,525.0, Honda Motor advanced 4% to ¥1,371.50, and Nissan Motor increased 2.2% to ¥322.40. 

Banks traded higher tracking gains in the yen, and the Japanese currency traded at 143.08 against the U.S. dollar, and the yield on 10-year Japanese government bonds hovered at 1.35%. 

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group gained 3.4% to ¥3,226.0, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group gained 2.7% to ¥1,691.50, and Mizuho Financial Group inched higher by 3.3% to ¥3,403.0. 

Marubeni Corp. gained 1.4% to ¥2,244.0, Itochu Corp. added 0.1% to ¥6,555.0, Mitsui & Company advanced 0.8% to ¥2,651.0, and Sumitomo Corp. inched higher 0.4% to ¥3,230.0.