(Bloomberg) -- The risk-off tone that’s engulfed global markets built on Wednesday as stocks in Asia opened lower in the wake of heightened uncertainty over this month’s upcoming tariff deadline. Treasuries held on to gains after yields tumbled the most since August overnight.
Australia’s main share index fell more than 1.5%, with losses more modest for equities in South Korea and Japan. Earlier, the S&P 500 Index declined for a third day, though it pared some losses into the close. The Trump administration signaled the U.S. plans to move forward with tariffs on Chinese goods if no deal is struck before the mid-December deadline. The president had earlier indicated he’d be willing to wait another year before striking an agreement with China. U.S. futures slipped after the U.S. House voted to sanction Chinese officials for human rights abuses.
With less than two weeks to go until the next U.S. tariff hike on Chinese goods due on Dec. 15, investors are showing nervousness that’s luring money back to safe-haven assets. Australian bonds tracked the overnight move higher in Treasuries. Expectations for a cease-fire on duties was part of the driver that sent global equities to a record high last month.
“It’s very difficult to have conviction about which way the trade situation will go,” Laura Kane, head of Americas thematic investing at UBS Global Wealth Management, told Bloomberg TV. “Just a few weeks ago the news was incrementally positive, now we’ve moved more negative again, but the situation is going to stay in flux as we enter next year.”
Investors are also assessing the passage of legislation in the U.S. House that would require the Trump administration to sanction Chinese government officials responsible for the repression of Muslims minorities.
Elsewhere, oil rose as traders focused on the upcoming OPEC+ meeting that could lead to deeper supply cuts by some of the biggest crude producers.
Here are some key events coming up this week:
- Australia’s GDP is due Wednesday.
- Germany releases factory-order data for October on Thursday.
- Saudi Aramco’s initial public offering is scheduled to be priced on Thursday, with Riyadh looking to raise more than $25 billion.
- Friday brings the U.S. jobs report, where estimates are for non-farm payrolls to rise by 190,000 in November.
Stocks
- Japan’s Topix index fell 0.6% as of 9:08 a.m. in Tokyo.
- South Korea’s Kospi dropped 0.7%.
- Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index declined 1.6%.
- Futures on the S&P 500 were little changed. The underlying gauge fell 0.7% on Tuesday.
- The yen was at 108.60 per dollar.
- The offshore yuan remained at 7.0712 per dollar.
- The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed.
- The euro was little changed at $1.1083.
- The yield on 10-year Treasuries remained at 1.72% after tumbling on Tuesday.
- Australia’s 10-year yield fell 10 basis points to 1.10%.
- West Texas Intermediate crude climbed 0.6% to $56.42 a barrel.
- Gold was at $1,477.32 an ounce after surging 1% the prior session.