Asian equities swung Tuesday as investors balanced fresh artificial intelligence concerns against a major US legal development on tariffs.
Supreme Court ruling on Trump tariffs
The Supreme Court of the United States struck down a large portion of tariff measures introduced by Donald Trump, ruling that he could not rely on a specific legal authority to impose sweeping levies.
Regional markets largely absorbed the decision calmly. Some countries had already benefited from lower tariffs introduced later under a separate authority. However, the ruling has created uncertainty around trade agreements negotiated since Trump’s so-called “Liberation Day” announcement in April.
The European Union has reportedly sought clarification before finalizing its own agreement with Washington. Meanwhile, Japan signaled it would stick to a pact agreed last year.
Trump warned on social media that countries attempting to “play games” after the ruling could face even higher tariffs.
Analysts suggested that while the legal mechanism for tariffs may shift, the broader economic effects may remain limited. Michael Brown of Pepperstone said the macroeconomic impact on growth, inflation and employment should be “minimal at most.”
AI fears pressure tech sentiment
Despite relative calm on trade, sentiment in Asia was dragged lower by renewed AI concerns.
A report from Citrini Research outlined future scenarios in which artificial intelligence tools could disrupt industries such as credit cards and food delivery.
Adding to the pressure, Anthropic said its Claude chatbot could help modernize the COBOL programming language used on IBM systems. IBM shares fell more than 13% in New York trading.
Earlier this month, Anthropic unveiled a model capable of replacing several software tools, including applications used in legal and marketing sectors. The developments have intensified investor concerns over how quickly AI may disrupt legacy business models — and whether massive AI infrastructure spending by companies like Microsoft and Meta will generate sufficient returns.
Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management described the rapid shift in market focus: one moment investors were pricing tariff risks, the next they were confronting the possibility that “code writes code.”
Market performance
While all three major Wall Street indexes fell at least 1% overnight, Asian markets showed mixed performance:
- Nikkei 225: +0.8%
- Hang Seng Index: −1.7%
- Shanghai Composite: +1.0%
Seoul continued to outperform, driven by chipmakers such as Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, while Tokyo advanced after reopening from a long weekend.
Hong Kong, Sydney, Singapore and Manila retreated.
Commodities and currencies
The risk-off tone helped gold hold recent gains around $5,200. Bitcoin hovered just above $64,000 after slipping from roughly $68,000.
Oil prices edged higher:
- West Texas Intermediate: $66.44 per barrel
- Brent crude: $71.63 per barrel
In currencies:
- Euro: $1.1782
- Pound: $1.3490
- Dollar/yen: 154.95
Overall, markets appear to be navigating two competing forces: evolving US trade policy risks and accelerating AI-driven disruption, both of which are reshaping investor expectations heading into 2026.
