Stock markets mostly fell, the dollar slid and and gold hit a record high Wednesday over fears about a trade war between superpowers China and the United States.
Chinese e-commerce firms took a hit from news that the US Postal Service was suspending inbound parcels from China and Hong Kong, a move that followed tit-for-tat tariffs.
European markets also struggled, with carmakers and luxury industries suffering losses.
Tensions between the United States and China have soared in recent days as the world’s two largest economies slapped a volley of import tariffs on each other.
Analysts noted that China’s tariff response this week was relatively modest, providing some hope that a full-blown crisis could be avoided.
But “the problem with trade wars is they can escalate quickly, leading to potential issues such as inflation, job losses and even recession”, said Kate Marshall, lead investment analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown.
Hong Kong’s stock market closed down nearly one percent, with e-commerce giant JD.com sinking almost four percent and rival Alibaba also falling.
Shanghai dropped after it returned from a week-long break, while Tokyo reversed earlier losses.
Amid uncertainty, gold hit a fresh peak above $2,866 an ounce as investors rushed into the haven metal.
The tepid performance came despite a positive lead from Wall Street, after the United States delayed its 25 percent duties on imports from Canada and Mexico.
Tech firms were also under pressure after disappointing earnings led Google-parent Alphabet to sink 7.5 percent in after-hours trade in New York.
Chip-maker Advanced Micro Devices also sank in post-close business.
The tech sector has already been roiled by the unveiling of a new chatbot by Chinese startup DeepSeek, stoking concerns about the eye-watering investments made in AI in recent years.
In other company news, shares in Japan’s Nissan fell around five percent following reports that the carmaker had decided to withdraw from merger talks with rival Honda.
Shares in Honda soared more than eight percent by the close.
British drugmaker GSK jumped more than five percent — topping London’s top-tier FTSE 100 index — after it upgraded its sales outlook on strong cancer medicine sales, despite its net profit nearly halving.
Spanish banking giant Santander surged seven percent after it reported record annual profits for a third consecutive year.
On currency markets, the yen strengthened against the dollar also following data showing nominal wages in Japan rose far more than expected last month and at the fastest pace since 1997.
That firmed expectations the country’s central bank would continue to hike interest rates this year.
By contrast, the Bank of England is widely forecast to cut borrowing costs Thursday.