Iran Vows Tougher Response as U.S. Sanctions Squeeze Economy 
Brent Oil Tops $100 as Middle East Conflict Threatens Supply 
European Stocks Flat as Iran Tensions, ECB Rate Hike Loom 
Iran Plans New Gulf Restricted Zone as Hormuz Tensions Push Oil Higher 
UK House Prices Fall for First Time Since 2023 
UK Food Inflation Forecast to Hit 6.4% by Mid-2027 
Oil Prices Climb as Iran Threatens Gulf Energy Infrastructure 
Japan GDP Growth Beats Forecast, Boosting BOJ Rate Hike Bets 
Canada Retaliatory Tariffs on U.S. Goods Take Effect 
Gold Prices Rebound as Dollar Weakens, Fed Decision Looms 
Japan, U.S. Stay Aligned on Yen as Currency Surges 
Gold Prices Rise as Yen Rally Weakens Dollar 
US Stock Futures Mixed as Fed Rate Hike Bets Rise 
Japanese Yen Nears Seven-Month High as Oil Approaches $100 
Asian Currencies Mixed as Yen Rallies on BOJ Bets 
ECB Set for September Rate Hike as Energy Prices Fuel Inflation 
Hungary Industrial Output Beats Forecasts With 4.7% July Growth 
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Japan’s Nikkei 225 plunged to an eight-month low on Thursday after U.S. President Donald Trump announced sweeping reciprocal tariffs, including a 24% duty on Japanese imports. The index dropped as much as 4.6% in early trading, hitting 34,102.00 — its lowest level since August 7 — before trimming losses to a 2.9% decline by 0050 GMT.
Market sentiment turned sharply risk-off, with 216 of the Nikkei's 225 listed companies falling into the red. The broader Topix index also took a heavy hit, losing as much as 4.3% before recovering slightly to trade down 3.1%.
The tariffs, significantly higher than the anticipated 10–20%, came as a shock. “We thought tariffs would be 10%, maybe 20%, but instead they were a whopping 24%,” said Kazuo Kamitani, equities strategist at Nomura Securities. “Call it the Trump tariff shock.”
Bank stocks led the decline, sliding 6.4%, as falling global bond yields dampened earnings expectations from lending and investments. Automakers also suffered steep losses. The Tokyo Stock Exchange’s automaker sub-index fell nearly 4%, with a separate 25% tariff on Japanese car exports to the U.S. taking effect later in the day. Toyota Motor shares dropped 4.7%.
Japan’s semiconductor sector was hit hard. Tokyo Electron, a major chip equipment maker, slumped 5.8%, while Advantest, a key supplier to Nvidia, lost 4.9%.
As geopolitical trade tensions escalate, investor confidence in Japanese equities has taken a major hit, driving capital outflows and adding further volatility to global markets.
