Trump's statement about the Ukrainian president shook financial markets.

There is caution spreading in global stock markets, especially in the Asian region, due to U.S. President Donald Trump's plans regarding tariffs, geopolitical concerns, and the attention of the Federal Reserve, which negatively affect investor sentiment.

Gold prices have reached a record level due to rising hedging risks. The safe-haven Japanese yen also strengthened to its highest level against the dollar since early December, Reuters reports.

In Europe, futures show a subdued start to trading on Thursday after the pan-European STOXX 600 index fell nearly 1% the previous day, marking the largest daily drop in two months. Futures for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq fell by 0.3%.

'During the week, Trump promised to impose tariffs on a wide range of imported goods, including pharmaceuticals, semiconductor chips, and lumber. He intends to introduce tariffs on cars by April 2. These threats of a trade war are causing anxiety among investors, although some analysts see Trump's actions as a negotiation strategy,' the agency reports.

Political tension is rising due to geopolitical concerns after Trump upset European officials by calling Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky a 'dictator' during U.S. negotiations with Russia to end the war in Ukraine.

The Japanese yen reached a two-month high against the dollar and is now up 0.9% to 150.065 per dollar. Since the beginning of the year, the yen has strengthened by more than 4% against the dollar due to increasing likelihood of Bank of Japan rate hikes in 2025.

'Uncertainty regarding the Federal Reserve's policy and Trump's tariffs will continue to worry markets and keep investors on edge, and there will be no end to this in the near future,' said Vasu Menon, managing director of investment strategy at OCBC Bank in Singapore.