Asian stocks traded in a tight range Thursday as a global relief rally started to give up momentum after mixed signals from the Trump administration on its plans for China tariffs. A regional gauge of stocks swung between small gains and losses as market enthusiasm got curbed after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent cast doubt on a timely resolution to the US-China trade war. That trimmed the S&P 500's gain Wednesday to 1.7%. The yen reversed two days of losses and the dollar weakened in early Asian trade. Gold jumped 1.4% in increased demand for the traditional safe-haven asset. Global equities and long-dated Treasuries rose on Wednesday on signs US President Donald Trump is rethinking the most-aggressive elements of his stances on trade and the Federal Reserve. We get reaction to the day's headlines from Mark Cranfield, Bloomberg MLIV Strategist in Singapore.

Plus -  SK Hynix reported a 158% jump in March-quarter operating income, driven in part by stockpiling ahead of US tariffs, and maintained its forecast for a doubling in demand for high-bandwidth memory. The company warned of increased volatility in the second half of 2025 due to uncertainty surrounding US tariffs, despite resilient demand for AI memory chips from big tech providers. We hear from SK Kim, Executive Director at Daiwa Securities.

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Stocks jumped and the dollar rose after President Donald Trump said he had no intention of firing Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell while optimism grew that trade tensions may be easing. Trump's comments on the Fed chief late Tuesday in Washington walk back opinions expressed earlier in the week that sparked concerns about the US central bank's independence. Progress in various trade talks also helped improve market sentiment after investors had broadly retreated from US assets this month following the announcement of century-high levies. We break down the themes driving volatility with Ecaterina Bigos, CIO for Asia ex-Japan Core Investments at AXA Investment Managers.

Plus - US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told a closed-door investor summit Tuesday that the tariff standoff with China cannot be sustained by both sides and that the world's two largest economies will have to find ways to de-escalate. That de-escalation will come in the very near future, Bessent said during an event hosted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. in Washington, which wasn't open to the public or media. He characterized the current situation as essentially a trade embargo, according to people who attended the session. We talk tariffs and trade policy with Tom Bruce, Macro Investment Strategist at Tanglewood Total Wealth Management.

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Asian stocks edged down at the open after US President Donald Trump's criticism of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell raised concerns about the central bank's independence and sparked a selloff in US assets. We get reaction from JoAnne Bianco, Partner & Senior Investment Strategist at BondBloxx Investment Management.

Plus - late Monday, Japan's Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said Japan won't concede to all US demands in trade talks, citing the need to protect national interests. Those comments come as a second round of trade talks between Tokyo and Washington are expected in the coming days.

Suntory Holdings Chairman and CEO Takeshi Niinami says the current situation regarding US tariffs is "really concerning."

Niinami, who also serves as Senior Economic Advisor to Prime Minister Ishiba, speaks with Bloomberg's Shery Ahn in Tokyo.

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Officials from Japan and South Korea are slated to begin trade negotiations with the United States this week. Early Monday, China's Ministry of Commerce said it firmly opposes any party reaching a deal at the expense of China’s interests. Those comments came as China claims Washington is using tariffs to coerce other countries to restrict economic and trade exchanges with Beijing. We get more perspective from Naomi Fink, Chief Global Strategist at Nikko Asset Management. She speaks with Bloomberg's Shery Ahn and Paul Allen.

Plus - Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee warned against efforts to curtail the central bank’s independence, days after President Donald Trump expressed his displeasure with Fed Chair Jerome Powell. Last week, Trump posted on Truth Social that Powell’s “termination cannot come fast enough!” He hasn’t clarified whether that means he intends to find a way to fire the Fed chief, or is simply eager for Powell’s term to end as scheduled in May 2026. We get reaction from Alicia Garcia Herrero, Chief APAC Economist at Natixis.

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Bloomberg Daybreak Weekend with Tom Busby takes a look at some of the stories we'll be tracking in the coming week.

• In the US – a look ahead to home sales data and Tesla earnings.
• In the UK – a look ahead to how companies across Europe and beyond are preparing to share their latest financial performances with the market.
• In Asia – a look ahead to how some Chinese companies are looking to skirt U.S President Donald Trump’s tariffs.

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Japanese stocks rose in the early Friday session as expectations for progress in trade negotiations between the US and the European Union supported automotive-related sectors. Most Asian markets are shut for the Good Friday holiday. Data released Friday showed Japan's consumer inflation advanced last month, supporting the central bank's stance on a gradual rate hike path before US tariff measures clouded the economic outlook. We speak with Mary Nicola, Bloomberg MLIV Strategist in Singapore.

Stateside - a rebound in US stocks evaporated this week after Chair Jerome Powell pushed back on the idea of the Federal Reserve stepping in to bolster markets, rankling President Donald Trump who touted a smattering of deals Thursday. We cap off the trading week with insights from James Demmert, Founder and Chief Investment Officer at Main Street Research.

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On this special holiday edition of Bloomberg Daybreak US edition, host John Tucker discusses President Trump recent criticism of Fed Chair Powell with Michael McKee and Stuart Paul. He also talks about ETF inflows with Eric Balchunas and looks at the future of antitrust litigation with Jennifer Rie. 

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On today's episode, we take a look at the impact of how US tariffs are reverberating through the global automotive industry. Ford Motor Company is preparing to raise prices on cars rolling off assembly lines starting next month if President Donald Trump doesn't deliver on the tariff relief he's hinted at for automakers, while Chinese EV maker Xpeng is ramping up its global expansion -- despite the intensifying trade war between Washington and Beijing, and the European Union's punitive tariffs against Chinese cars. We speak with Dr. Stephen Dyer, Head of the Asia Automotive Practice at AlixPartners.

Plus - Warnings from Chair Jerome Powell that trade tensions risk undermining the Federal Reserve's employment and inflation goals whipped up fresh volatility on Wall Street Wednesday, with stocks resuming sharp declines while haven assets like Treasuries and gold surged. We unpack the day's market moves with Shams Afzal, Managing Director at the Carnegie Investment Counsel.

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Asian stocks edged lower and US equity-index futures dropped at the open as trade conflicts showed no signs of abating. Nvidia said the US put new restrictions on some chip exports to China. Contracts for the Nasdaq 100 fell more than 1.5% and S&P 500 futures retreated 1% after Nvidia slumped in after-hours trading. That’s even as results from Wall Street’s financial heavyweights on Tuesday underscored an equity-trading boon and still-healthy consumers and businesses. We discuss the day's market headlines with Ken Stern, President and CEO at Lido Advisors.

Plus - TikTok users in the US are being inundated with videos from Chinese influencers encouraging American buyers to overcome punitive Trump tariffs by buying direct from the “world’s factory” — China. Mostly filmed at Chinese factories purporting to supply top US brands from Lululemon Athletica to Nike, the influencers aim to “expose” how the vast majority of consumer goods are made in the world’s second-largest economy. Colum Murphy, China EcoGov Reporter for Bloomberg News, joins us from Beijing to break down the story.

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Speaking exclusively to Bloomberg, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent played down the recent selloff in the bond market, rejecting speculation that foreign nations were dumping their holdings of US Treasuries.

In her latest column, Bloomberg Opinion's Shuli Ren writes China is done retaliating against President Donald Trump's exorbitant tariffs, calling the administration's actions a "joke" that it no longer considers worthy of matching. The question now is whether President Xi Jinping will find a more potent weapon to strike back - such as its $760 billion worth of Treasury securities. We get her reaction to Bessent's comments.

Plus - a degree of calm returned to Wall Street, with stocks and bonds notching a twin rally after a tumultuous week in the grip of President Trump's disruptive trade war. We get reaction to the day's market action from Ross Mayfield, Investment Strategist at Baird.

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