06:40 AM EDT, 03/28/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Asian stock markets largely sagged Friday, as traders digested the Trump administration's trade policies, including the new 25% tariffs on automobiles imported to the US.

Hong Kong, Shanghai and Tokyo finished in the red, as did most other regional exchanges.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 opened lower and never recovered, finishing off 1.8%. A stronger yen also weakened export issues, while shares that reached ex-dividend dates were sold off as well.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 fell 679.64 to 37,120.33, as losing issues outnumbered gainers 183 to 41. CyberAgent declined 5.5%, while railroad operator Keio rose 2.8%.

In economic news, Tokyo's headline consumer price index rose 2.9% on year in February, edging up from the 2.8% on-year gained logged in January, reported the Statistics Bureau.

Tokyo's core CPI, that excludes fresh food bills, rose 2.4% on year in February, slightly hotter than a 2.2% rise in January.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index opened evenly but declined to the close, finishing off on international trade news.

The broad gauge Hang Seng fell 152.20 to 23,426.60 as losing issues outnumbered gainers 55 to 28. The Hang Seng TECH Index lost 1.5% on the day, while the Mainland Properties Index bucked trends and rose 0.4%.

Haier Smart Home declined 7.5%, while Hansoh Pharmaceutical gained 6.6%.

On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite fell 0.7% to 3,351.31.

On the other regional exchanges, the S. Korean KOSPI fell 1.9%; the Taiwan TWSE declined 1.6%; the Australian ASX 200 inclined 0.2%; the Singapore Straits Times Index fell 0.2%, and the Thai Set declined 1.1%. In late trading in Mumbai, the Sensex was down 0.3%.

In other news, an earthquake centered in Myanmar rattled the region, causing one tower under construction in Bangkok to collapse, and prompting the prime minister to declare a state of emergency for the Thailand capital.