Global Markets Rally After Trump Pauses Tariffs

Indices from Tokyo to Frankfurt all experienced rapid rises following the president’s announcement.

Workers walk past an electronic board showing the numbers of the Nikkei Stock Average on the Tokyo Stock Exchange along a street in Tokyo on April 8 2025. Kazuhiro Nogi/AFP

Stocks surged on Thursday after President Donald Trump announced an immediate 90-day pause on reciprocal tariffs for many trading partners, prompting a relief rally following a days-long market rout.

“I have authorized a 90 day PAUSE,” Trump said in a social media post. He said more than 75 countries want to negotiate on trade and are not retaliating against his latest tariff increases.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told reporters that the pause was a reward for countries that refrained from retaliating against the United States and that Trump used the duties to create “maximum negotiating leverage.”

“This was his strategy all along,” he said. “And you might even say that he goaded China into a bad position. They responded. They have shown themselves to the world to be the bad actor.”

The suspension of tariffs on scores of nations came less than 24 hours after they kicked in, stunning markets and governments almost as much as their introduction.

Washington maintained a 10 percent blanket duty on almost all imports into the United States.

In Europe, the pan-continental STOXX 600 jumped 7.2 percent at 7.09 a.m. GMT, after losing 12.5 percent since the U.S. reciprocal tariffs were announced on April 2.

The trade-sensitive DAX index in Frankfurt, Germany, rose by 8.1 percent, while London’s FTSE-100 index was up by more than 4 percent.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Thursday welcomed Trump’s announcement of a pause in reciprocal tariffs and said the EU would also put its planned countermeasures on hold for 90 days in response.

Asian markets also rallied on Thursday, though China’s gains were more subdued after Trump increased pressure on the Chinese communist regime by raising the tariff on Chinese goods imported into the United States to 125 percent from the 104 percent level that took effect Wednesday. The move was in response to Beijing’s announcement of an 84 percent levy on U.S. goods starting April 10.

“At some point, hopefully in the near future, China will realize that the days of ripping off the U.S.A., and other Countries, is no longer sustainable or acceptable,” Trump said in a Truth Social post.

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 jumped 9.1 percent to close at 34,609.00, surging as soon as trading opened. South Korea’s Kospi gained 6.6 percent to 2,445.06, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng added 2.4 percent to 20,750.65, and the Shanghai Composite rose by 1.2 percent to 3,223.64.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose by 4.5 percent to 7,709.60.

Stephen Innes, managing partner at SPI Asset Management, said investors went “from fear to euphoria.”

“It’s now a manageable risk, especially as global recession tail bets get unwound, and most of Asia’s exporters breathe a massive sigh of relief,” he said.

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange during afternoon trading in New York City on April 9, 2025. Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), made up of 10 states in the region, said on Thursday that it would not introduce tariffs on U.S. goods.

“We express our common intention to engage in a frank and constructive dialogue with the U.S. to address trade-related concerns,” the group’s economics ministers said in a joint statement. “Open communication and collaboration will be crucial to ensuring a balanced and sustainable relationship. In that spirit, ASEAN commits to not impose any retaliatory measures in response to the U.S. tariffs.”

Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.