Asia stocks trade in red on Monday as sentiment soured after U.S. President Trump announced Friday a 100% tariff on all Chinese goods effective November 1, in retaliation for China’s new export curbs on rare earth minerals. The pressure on regional equities persisted despite a late attempt at reassurance from President Donald Trump, who wrote on Truth Social, "Don’t worry about China, it will all be fine." On the geopolitical front, Trump said on Sunday that the Gaza war has ended as he flew to Israel for the release of hostages. Bitcoin ( BTC-USD ) steadied around $115,000 on Monday after a sharp selloff last week, as US President Donald Trump walked back his threat to impose massive tariffs on China, saying in a Truth Social post that trade relations with the country “will all be fine.” Gold scaled an all-time peak of $4,070 per ounce on Monday, as renewed US-China trade concerns and economic uncertainty boosted safe-haven demand. Japan ( NKY:IND ) fell 1.01%. The Japanese yen weakened toward 152 per dollar in thin holiday trading on Monday, reversing some of the previous session’s gains. In Japan, markets reassessed the odds that LDP leader Sanae Takaichi will become prime minister and roll out fresh fiscal stimulus after Komeito quit the ruling coalition on Friday, ending a partnership of more than 25 years over what it called Takaichi’s failure to “provide sufficient answers regarding political funding issues.” China ( SHCOMP ) fell 0.72% to around 3,860 while the Shenzhen Component dropped 2.3% to 13,050 on Monday, extending losses from the previous session after US President Donald Trump threatened to impose an additional 100% tariff on Chinese goods in response to Beijing’s new export controls on rare earth minerals, and the offshore yuan edged higher to around 7.14 per dollar on Monday. China vowed to retaliate if the tariffs are implemented. However, Trump later signaled openness to negotiate ahead of a possible meeting with President Xi Jinping later this month, saying that trade relations with China “will all be fine.” China posted a $90.45 billion trade surplus in September 2025 . Exports grew 8.3% ( y/y ) to $328.6 billion, marking a seven-month high and exceeding expectations. Imports also accelerated, rising 7.4% ( y/y ) to $238.1 billion. Hong Kong ( HSI ) fell 2.63% to 25,776 on Monday morning, marking the sixth session of losses and the lowest level in a month. India ( SENSEX ) fell 0.33% to 82,178 in morning trade on Monday, halting gains from the previous two sessions as renewed US-China trade tensions rattled investor sentiment. Australia ( AS51 ) fell 0.84% to 8,910 on Monday, extending losses from the previous week as weakness in the mining and energy sectors continued to pressure the index. The Australian dollar rose toward $0.653 on Monday, rebounding from significant losses in the previous week, as investor sentiment improved following reassuring comments from President Donald Trump amid rising tensions in the US-China trade dispute. Australia is considering mandated floor prices for critical minerals and new funding for rare earth projects as part of a proposed resources deal with the U.S., the Age reported Sunday. Domestically, investors are closely watching for the release of the RBA meeting minutes, upcoming speeches by central bank officials, and key labor market data expected in the coming days. In the U.S. on Friday, all three major indexes ended lower retreating from recent highs after President Donald Trump rattled markets with threats of a “massive” tariff hike on Chinese goods and suggested he might cancel his upcoming meeting with President Xi Jinping. Investors now await earnings results from major banks later this week, including from Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, Wells Fargo, JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Morgan Stanley. U.S. stock futures climbed on Monday after President Donald Trump suggested he may scale back his threat to impose steep new tariffs on China: Dow +0.87% ; S&P 500 +1.27% ; Nasdaq +1.70%. Currencies: ( JPY:USD ), ( CNY:USD ), ( AUD:USD ), ( INR:USD ), ( HKD:USD ), ( NZD:USD ). More on Asia: China's exports surge to six-month high, driving September trade surplus to $90.45B Stock index futures rebound as Trump downplays China rift Japan's producer prices rises more than expected in September to 2.7% U.S. sanctions 29 companies in China, Turkey, and UAE over Iran military support China tightens export rules for crucial rare earths and related technology
