(April 14): Global technology stocks climbed on Monday as investors expressed optimism that the sector may win some concessions from US President Donald Trump when he finalises his tariff plans.

The US administration late on Friday published measures exempting smartphones, computers and other electronics from its so-called reciprocal tariffs. While Trump later said the exemptions will only be temporary, investors seemed to be taking heart from the reprieve that opens a window for companies and lobbyists to push for different parameters and exclusions.

“The market is trying to look through the noise and assuming we will end up in a negotiated endgame that is more favourable than current terms,” said Matthew Haupt, a portfolio manager at Wilson Asset Management in Sydney. Still, “the amount of conflicting statements and policy on the run makes it impossible to trade short term”.

Shares of Apple Inc climbed more than 6% on the Robinhood trading platform. Nasdaq 100 futures jumped more than 2.3% in early Asian trading hours on Monday before paring the advance. A gauge of Asian tech stocks rose as much as 2.6%, boosting the regional benchmark.

Friday’s exemptions — published by US Customs and Border Protection — narrowed the scope of the levies by excluding the products from Trump’s 125% China tariffs and his baseline 10% global tariff on nearly all other countries.

US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick insisted that it was only a pause, though the new tech levies will almost certainly be lower than the 125% rate on China. Trump later said that details on a tariff rate for semiconductors would be announced in the coming week.

“I think it is ‘net’ reprieve, as the bet that electronics will still be less than the 125% reciprocal on China and that companies get to build buffers now,” said Vishnu Varathan, head of economics and strategy at Mizuho Bank. The biggest beneficiary in Asia around this news will likely be China “temporarily, but I would not take too much solace in that as the guns are still trained on China”.

On Monday, equity markets across the region seemed to be taking the latest news positively, with the benchmark MSCI Asia Pacific Index climbing almost 2%. Stock indexes in China and Hong Kong also extended their recent rally.

In Taiwan, iPhone assembler Hon Hai Precision Industry Co gained as much as 7.8%. Hong Kong-listed PC maker Lenovo Group Ltd, which gets about one-third of its sales from the Americas, jumped 10%.

South Korean parts maker LG Innotek Co, which gets the bulk of its revenue from Apple, surged as much as 8.9%. Nvidia Corp supplier Advantest Corp rose 6.3% in Tokyo. China’s Luxshare Precision Industry Co, which gets about 75% of its revenue from Apple, advanced 7% before erasing most of the gain.

The Apple supply chain “will likely be the biggest beneficiary” as about 90% of iPhone and 80% of iPad assembly capacity is in China, Citigroup analyst Kyna Wong wrote in a note. The Nvidia supply chain “will also modestly benefit”, though the chip sector faces uncertainty over other regulations.

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