SINGAPORE (The Straits Times/ANN): The Singapore stock market appeared largely unruffled by President Donald Trump’s announcement that he would impose new global levies of 15 per cent after the US Supreme Court on Feb 20 struck down his Liberation Day tariffs.
The Straits Times Index (STI) was up 0.3 per cent, to 5,032.41 at the midday trading break, after briefly dipping below its previous close soon after the stock market opened. It closed at 5,041.33 on Feb 23, marking an increase of over 23 points, or 0.5 per cent.
Around the region, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rallied 2.3 per cent, driven by Chinese stocks, with China – one of those hardest hit by the Liberation Day tariffs – among countries that expect to see duties coming down on shipments to the US.
Financial markets in China and Japan were closed for public holidays.
South Korea’s Kospi index gained 0.6 per cent, while India’s Nifty 50 added 0.8 per cent and Malaysia’s KLCI index rose 0.3 per cent.
On the other hand, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was down 0.7 per cent as investors sought much-needed clarity after the flurry of tariff announcements.
The US Supreme Court ruled on Feb 20 that the US President did not have the power to impose his tariffs under a law intended for use in national emergencies. Mr Trump had used the Act to announce the sweeping global tariffs in April 2025, ranging from 10 per cent to 50 per cent on goods coming into the United States.
In response, Trump immediately announced a 10 per cent global tariff on US imports from all countries for 150 days, using another trade Act. Just a day later, he said he would raise that temporary tariff to 15 per cent, the maximum allowed under the Act.
Analysts noted that it was not yet clear when Trump’s new tariffs would be imposed, what might be excluded and whether every country would be hit with the 15 per cent. Some, including Singapore and Australia, had 10 per cent tariff rates under the former rules, while many countries in Asia like India and China had higher rates.
Janus Henderson Investors head of global short duration and liquidity Daniel Siluk struck an upbeat note: “For markets, the ruling modestly reduces US trade policy uncertainty by limiting the President’s ability to impose abrupt, executive-driven tariffs.
“We view this as mildly supportive for global risk sentiment and trade-exposed sectors, even if it does not signal a wholesale reversal of the recent trend towards US protectionism.”
He added that the decision underscores a shift towards slower, more procedurally constrained trade policy.
But Brian Levitt, chief global market strategist at Invesco, said that despite the US Supreme Court striking down the tariffs, overall US tariff levels are unlikely to decline substantially.
“Other statutes grant the President broad authority to impose tariffs, meaning those previously enacted could simply be reimposed under different legal frameworks,” he said.
“This is why the markets’ initial reaction to the ruling may ultimately be short-lived.”
Rystad Energy chief economist Claudio Galimberti agreed that the ruling does not dismantle the broader tariff framework, although it might weaken US’ ability to target individual countries.
He added that if the upper limit of the 15 per cent tariffs is reached, this might raise the average tariff rate across the board to even higher than under the previous structure that the court struck down.
“The stick is now the same size for everyone, and it is a little smaller,” he said, although he noted that renegotiation is back on the table.
“The current result of the Supreme Court’s ruling is not a reversal of protectionism, but a narrower, more legally constrained US tariff regime.”
Morningstar director of equity research for Asia Lorraine Tan also said that she anticipated a muted reaction from the markets because limited changes are expected to the agreements already in place.
She noted that steel and auto were not part of the strike down by the court and pharmaceuticals and semiconductors remain exempt from tariffs for now.
“While this does add uncertainty, I don’t think it is so huge as to lead to knee-jerk market reactions,” she said.
However, Eastspring Investment analysts Vis Nayar and Ray Farris said in a report that the court’s decision is ultimately beneficial for Asia.
“It should make arbitrary threat and imposition of tariffs by the US President more difficult – other tariff facilities generally require lengthy investigations. It also establishes a precedent for challenging tariff justification under law,” their report said.
But the report added that although there is a “reasonable chance” that overall tariff rates will fall later in 2026, tariff rates on specific sectors and products may rise.
Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong said on Feb 22 that the Singapore Government will engage its US counterparts to seek clarity on the implementation of the potential new 15 per cent tariff.
But he also noted that if the 15 per cent minimum tariff is applied across the board, it would be very difficult for Singapore to negotiate for exemptions.
“The key word really is uncertainty, because it’s not clear how it’s going to be implemented,” he said. – The Straits Times/ANN