World Markets Advance as Tech Shares are Boosted by Trump's Exemption for Tariffs on Electronics

HONG KONG (AP) -- Asian markets rallied on Monday as tensions over trade eased slightly after U.S. President Donald Trump said electronics such as computer chips, smart phones and laptops would not be subject to the same high import duties as some other products.

U.S. futures also gained after a rally Friday on Wall Street. However, a weaker U.S. dollar and lower oil prices hinted at persisting worries over the direction of Trump's trade war.

In early European trading, Germany's DAX gained 1.9% to 20,752.94, while the CAC 40 in Paris was up 1.8% at 7,235.36. Britain's FTSE 100 added 1.6% to 8,091.14.

The future for the S&P 500 gained 1.1% while that for the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.6%.

Asian shares logged sturdy gains. Japan's Nikkei 225 rose 1.2% to 33,982.36 and South Korea's Kospi gained 1% to 2,455.89.

Shares in technology companies surged, with Tokyo Electron up 1.4% and Advantest, a testing equipment maker, up 4.9%. South Korea's biggest company, Samsung Electronics, gained 1.8%.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng jumped 2.3% to 21,397.20, while the Shanghai Composite index picked up 0.8% to 3,262.81 after the government reported that China's exports surged 12.4% in March from a year earlier.

U.S. President Donald Trump said he was temporarily exempting smartphones, computers and other electronics from his tariffs after China announced Friday that it was boosting its tariffs on U.S. products to 125% in the latest tit-for-tat increase following Trump's escalations on imports from China.

The Chinese Ministry of Commerce said Trump's move was "a small step" toward fixing its wrongful action of what Trump calls reciprocal tariffs. It urged him to completely cancel them.

Rising tensions between the world's two largest economies could cause widespread damage and a possible global recession, even after Trump recently announced a 90-day pause on some of his tariffs for other countries, except for China.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 added 1.3%, closing at 7,748.60.

The Taiex fell 0.1% in Taiwan, whose economy is heavily dependent on exports of computer chips and other high-tech goods after Trump said the new chip tariffs will be announced "over the next week".

On Friday, the S&P 500 rose 1.8%, capping a chaotic and historic week. The Dow gained 1.6% and the Nasdaq composite jumped 2.1%.

Stocks kicked higher as pressure eased a bit from within the U.S. bond market. It's typically the more boring corner of Wall Street, but it's been flashing serious enough signals of worry this week that it's demanded investors' and Trump's attention.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury was trading at 4.47% early Monday. On Friday, it topped 4.58% in the morning, up from 4.01% a week ago. That's a major move for a market that typically measures things in hundredths of a percentage point.

Bond yields typically fall in times of alarm. Investors outside the United States could be selling their U.S. bonds because of the trade war, and hedge funds could be selling whatever's available to raise cash to cover other losses. More worryingly, doubts may be rising about the United States' reputation as the world's safest place to keep cash because of Trump's frenetic, on-and-off tariff actions.

Gold, considered a safe haven for investors, was trading at $3,244 an ounce.

A report on inflation at the wholesale level came in better than expected. But it's a backward looking indicator, measuring March's price levels. The worry is that inflation will rise in coming months as Trump's tariffs make their way through the economy. And that could tie the Fed's hands.

Friday's swings came after a set of stronger-than-expected profit reports from some of the biggest U.S. banks, which traditionally help kick off each earnings reporting season.

JPMorgan Chase, Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo all reported stronger profit for the first three months of the year than analysts expected. JPMorgan Chase rose 4%, Morgan Stanley added 1.4% and Wells Fargo lost 1%.

In other trading early Monday, U.S. benchmark crude oil dropped 10 cents to $61.40 per barrel, and Brent crude, the international standard, lost 10 cents to $64.66 per barrel.

The U.S. dollar dropped to 142.68 Japanese yen from 143.91 yen. The euro climbed to $1.1398 from $1.1320.