In Asian Equity Markets indices clawed back some gains on Thursday after sliding in the last session on trade-related fears. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index rose 0.31 percent and the Topix was up 0.12 percent. The Topix Iron & Steel index rose 0.39 percent as steel producers mostly clung to gains. Kobe Steel rose 2.92 percent and JFE Holdings added 0.09 percent, although Nisshin Steel slipped 0.58 percent. Large cap technology names traded higher, with Nintendo rising 3.51 percent. Elsewhere, South Korea’s Kospi advanced 0.46 percent. Shipbuilders put in a strong showing, with Samsung Heavy rising 6.3 percent and Hyundai Heavy Industries climbing 5.84 percent.

In Currency Markets the US dollar recovered ground on Thursday, drawing relief from positive labour market data and the White House saying Canada and Mexico, and possibly other countries, may be exempted from planned U.S. import tariffs on steel and aluminium. The U.S. currency was steady at 106.040 yen after slipping to as low as 105.450 the previous day in reaction to Cohn’s departure. Elsewhere on the currency markets, the euro trod water ahead of a European Central Bank meeting, later in the day, that is expected to leave policy rates unchanged for now, but may provide clues to the future. The euro was little changed at $1.2408 after retracing a bounce earlier on Wednesday to a 2-1/2-week peak of $1.2447.

In Commodities Markets oil prices steadied on Thursday, supported by healthy demand, after falling the previous day on the back of record U.S. crude production and rising inventories. Brent crude futures were at $64.46 per barrel up 0.2 percent, from their previous close. That slight rise came after a more-than-2 percent fall the previous day. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $61.26 a barrel up 0.2 percent. WTI also fell by more than 2 percent the previous session. The slight recovery on Thursday came amid a U.S. crude inventory build that was not as big as expected during the current seasonal demand lull at the end of winter, when many oil refineries shut down for maintenance.

In US Equity Markets the S&P 500 ended slightly lower after Wednesday’s volatile session as investors struggled to get a read on U.S. trade policy after President Donald Trump promised hefty import tariffs but then said Mexico and Canada could be exempt. The S&P 500 lost a marginally 0.05 percent, to 2,726.8 and the Nasdaq Composite added 0.33 percent, to 7,396.65. The S&P energy sector was one of the weakest of the S&P’s 11 sectors with a 0.8 percent decline. The S&P’s technology index was also a bright spot with a 0.6 percent increase. Its biggest boosts came from a 2.2 percent increase in Facebook and a 14.9 percent jump in shares of software supplier Autodesk after its quarterly report.

In Bond Markets Japanese government bond prices slipped on Thursday as a recovery in domestic shares curbed investor demand for safe-haven debt. The five-year JGB yield rose half a basis point to minus 0.115 percent, and the benchmark 10-year yield also climbed half a basis point to 0.050 percent. The 30-year yield was 1 basis point higher at 0.750 percent. Treasuries were little changed on the day Wednesday in choppy trading as investors weighed the risks of trade wars following the resignation of Gary Cohn, the top economic advisor to U.S. President Donald Trump, and the prospect of a more hawkish Federal Reserve as economic momentum improves.