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Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 shoots up in early trading, gaining more than 2,000 points

TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 shot up in early Thursday trading, as investors welcomed President Donald Trump ’s decision to back off on most of his tariffs.

The Tokyo Stock Exchange’s Nikkei 225 was trading at 34,052.58, up 7.4% within the first 15 minutes of trading.

The surge echoes the jump overnight on Wall Street, which had one of its best days in history, with the S&P 500 surging 9.5%. But the rallies follow earlier losses in global markets when the tariffs were announced.

On Wednesday U.S. stocks soared after Trump said he would back off on most of his tariffs temporarily. They had been sinking earlier in the day on worries that Trump’s trade war could drag the global economy into a recession. But then came the posting on social media that investors worldwide had been waiting and wishing for.

“I have authorized a 90 day PAUSE,” Trump said, after recognizing the more than 75 countries that he said have been negotiating on trade and had not retaliated against his latest increases in tariffs.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent later told reporters that Trump was pausing his so-called ‘reciprocal’ tariffs on most of the country’s biggest trading partners, but maintaining his 10% tariff on nearly all global imports.

China was a huge exception, though, with Trump saying tariffs are going up to 125% against its products. That raises the possibility of more swings ahead that could stun financial markets. The trade war is not over, and an escalating battle between the world’s two largest economies can create plenty of damage. U.S. stocks are also still below where they were just a week ago, when Trump announced worldwide tariffs on what he called “Liberation Day.”