SINGAPORE – Mirroring gains in US stock futures, Asian markets rallied on 29 May, even as investors remained cautious following a US federal court ruling that blocked President Donald Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs.

The US Court of International Trade ruled on 28 May that Trump had overstepped his authority by imposing sweeping tariffs on imports from countries running trade surpluses with the United States.

The White House quickly filed an appeal and may take the case to the Supreme Court if necessary. For now, the ruling has provided some hope that Trump could back away from implementing the steepest tariffs he had threatened.

“We’re still trying to assess the broader impact, but clearly markets are reacting instinctively,” said Ray Attrill, Head of FX Strategy at NAB, as quoted by The Straits Times (29/5). “So it could just be a storm in a teacup – or possibly something more meaningful.”

Japan’s Nikkei index climbed 1.4%, South Korea’s Kospi added 1.2%, and Taiwan’s Taiex gained 0.5%. Meanwhile, equity indices in Hong Kong, China, and Australia were mostly flat.

Earlier, US stock futures had also risen after the trade court blocked parts of Trump’s tariffs. Additionally, strong earnings from Nvidia (NVDA) continued to buoy sentiment on Wall Street, even though the company issued warnings related to chip export restrictions.

Details of the futures movement include:

• Futures linked to the Dow Jones Industrial Average (YM=F) rose 1.0%
• Futures linked to the S&P 500 (ES=F) rose 1.6%
• Futures tied to the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 (NQ=F) surged 1.6%. (DH/ZH)