Asia-Pacific markets set for mixed open as Trump reciprocal tariff deadline looms

Asia-Pacific markets were set to open mixed Monday as U.S. President Donald Trump’s April 2 tariff deadline looms.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.37% at the open.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index futures last traded at 23,657, lower than HSI’s last close of 23,689.72. Over the weekend, China’s Premier Li Qiang cautioned “rising instability” and called for countries to open up markets and enterprises.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 futures pointed to a higher open for the market. The futures contract in Chicago was at 37,625 and its counterpart in Osaka last traded at 37,310 compared to the index’s previous close of 37,677.06.

U.S. stock futures were higher, signaling that equities could extend their recent gains.

Last Friday in the U.S., the three major averages closed higher. The indexes rebounded from their lows after Trump mentioned there would be some “flexibility” regarding tariffs. However, he reiterated the April 2 deadline for reciprocal tariffs.

The S&P 500 added 0.08% to close at 5,667.56, rising into positive territory to end four consecutive weeks of declines that were brought on by trade policy turmoil, recession fears and a rollover in megacap tech shares. The Nasdaq Composite gained 0.52% and settled at 17,784.05, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 32.03 points, or 0.08%, to close at 41,985.35.

CNBC’s Brian Evans, Sean Conlon and Hakyung Kim contributed to this report.