Wall Street's main stock indexes closed sharply lower overnight after US president Donald Trump announced the start of 25 per cent tariffs on Canada and Mexico.
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq have ended sharply lower overnight, weighed down by a slump in chipmaker Nvidia after its quarterly report failed to rekindle Wall Street's AI rally.
The ASX200 has finished up 0.3 per cent following better-than-expected earnings from Coles, Qantas, Medibank Private, Ramsay Health Care and Eagers Automotive.
The ASX has fallen for a seventh day of losses out of the last eight sessions, even as domestic monthly inflation figures came in slightly under expectations.
Some of Wall Street's brightest stars lost more of their shine overnight after another report said US households are getting more pessimistic about the economy.
The Nasdaq Composite fell more than 1 per cent overnight, with big technology stocks creating the biggest drag as investors worried about demand for technology supporting artificial intelligence.
The local share market has snapped a five-day losing streak, with a rebound by the big banks outweighing a huge drop by the bourse's biggest tech firm and losses in the mining sector.
US stocks tumbled on Friday, extending their sell-off in the wake of dour economic reports and closing the book on a holiday-shortened week fraught with new tariff threats and worries of softening consumer demand.
The Australian share market has suffered its worst weekly loss in more than two years after giving up ground each day, while the local currency has climbed to a two-month high.
The ASX200 has finished 0.7 per cent lower, extending its losses after the Reserve Bank cut rates while cautioning it might not do so again anytime soon.
Australia's economy is recovering thanks to the government's measures but an interest rate call is ultimately out of its hands, the prime minister says.
Peter Dutton appears to be kicking with the wind behind his back, with multiple opinion polls showing the Albanese government could be on the nose with voters as an election nears.
