Cyprus Times

Asian Markets Fall After Trump Statements – Oil Recovers

Published January 8, 2026, 08:07
Asian Markets Fall After Trump Statements – Oil Recovers

Statements from Donald Trump triggered declines in most Asian stock markets, while also impacting oil prices. Trump announced he would not allow defense companies to distribute dividends or repurchase shares, leading to significant losses for defense stocks like SoftBank (-7.59%) and Tokyo Electron (-4.01%). Simultaneously, the announcement that Venezuela would deliver 50 million barrels of crude oil to the US initially caused oil prices to fall, but a subsequent recovery was observed. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 index saw gains, while declines were recorded in Hong Kong and China. Notably, the stock of Zhipu, a Chinese artificial intelligence company, rose on its stock market debut.