Ammon News - Asia's shares followed Wall Street's positive lead on Tuesday as some investors hoped U.S. President-elect Donald Trump would adopt less aggressive tariffs than previously thought when he takes office.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.03%, while Japan's Nikkei jumped 2%, boosted by a rally in technology stocks.

Stocks in Europe, however, looked set for a negative start after Monday's gain. EUROSTOXX 50 futures fell 0.5%, while FTSE futures retreated 0.47%.

In the U.S., S&P 500 futures slipped 0.07%. Nasdaq futures lost 0.16% after the underlying indexes rose on Monday to more than a one-week high.

The Washington Post reported on Monday that Trump aides were exploring tariff plans that would be applied to every country but only cover certain sectors deemed critical to national or economic security, in what would represent a marked softening from promises Trump had made during the 2024 presidential campaign.

While the news initially sent stocks rallying and the dollar falling, Trump's subsequent denial on his Truth Social platform reversed some of the U.S. currency's declines. Reuters