Stock market today: Asia shares trade mostly lower as as investors weigh impact of US-China tariffs 

​Your support helps us to tell the storySupport NowFrom reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.Your support makes all the difference. Asian shares were mostly lower Wednesday as markets mulled the impact of tariffs being imposed by the United States and China. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 slipped 0.2% in early trading to 38,727.19. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.5% to 8,417.10. The Hang Seng dropped 0.6% to 20,659.41, while the Shanghai Composite lost 0.3% to 3,239.74. South Korea’s Kospi jumped 1.1% to 2,508.58, as investors found bargains after the recent price dips and found optimism from the overnight Wall Street rally.Some analysts see tariffs on China as separate from Trump’s moves against other trading partners. Trump may be more likely to keep tariffs on China longer, as he did in his first presidential term, to separate the United States more from its geopolitical rival.Trump is pressing ahead with a 10% tariff on U.S. companies importing things from China. And China retaliated on Tuesday by announcing its own tariffs on some U.S. products and an antitrust investigation into Google. China’s 15% tariff on U.S. coal and liquefied natural gas products, as well as a 10% tariff on crude oil, agricultural machinery and large-engine cars imported from the United States won’t take effect until Monday. That leaves time for negotiations between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. “Trade tensions haven’t exploded yet, but they’re simmering dangerously close to a full boil, and anyone brushing them off does so at their own risk,” said Stephen Innes, managing partner at SPI Asset Management.On Wall Street, calm returned, as tech stocks led U.S. indexes higher following a strong profit report from Palantir Technologies, a darling benefiting from the artificial-intelligence boom.The S&P 500 rose 0.7% a day after swinging sharply on worries that President Donald Trump’s tariffs could spark a trade war that would hurt economies around the world, including the United States.The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 134 points, or 0.3%, and the Nasdaq composite climbed 1.4%. Trump on Monday agreed to delay his taxes on U.S. imports of Canad