Japan’s stock market crashed on Tuesday, with major indices extending their losses as fears over U.S. trade tariffs intensified following aggressive remarks from former U.S. President Donald Trump and senior officials. The Nikkei 225 Index nosedived 6.35% to close at 31,636.46 JPY, reflecting rising investor anxiety over escalating trade tensions.
The broader market also witnessed sharp declines. The TOPIX Index dropped 6.04% to 2,332.26 JPY, and the Tokyo Stock Exchange Prime Market Index mirrored the same percentage fall, ending at 1,200.19 JPY. The TOPIX 100 Index suffered the steepest drop, plunging 6.43% to 1,580.49 JPY.
The ongoing sell-off was triggered by Trump’s Sunday comments defending the market drop. “I don’t want anything to go down, but sometimes you have to take medicine to fix something,” he said, stressing that unless the U.S.’s trillion-dollar trade deficit with China is addressed, there would be no deal.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick further confirmed that the tariffs would proceed without delay, telling CBS News, “The tariffs are coming… They are definitely going to stay in place for days and weeks.” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent echoed a firm stance, saying that though over 50 countries have approached the administration for negotiations, “they’ve been bad actors for a long time, and it’s not the kind of thing you can negotiate away in days or weeks.”
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