Tokyo: Asian shares sank again on Wednesday as the latest set of U.S. tariffs, including a massive 104% levy on Chinese imports, was due to take effect.

Japan's main Nikkei index of shares fell in early trade on Wednesday after Wall Street stocks turned lower.

The Nikkei 225 was down 2.67 percent to 32,130.00, having rebounded six percent on Tuesday from heavy losses after US President Donald Trump's announcement of sweeping tariffs.

Meanwhile, South Korea's currency tumbled Wednesday to its lowest level against the US dollar since 2009 amid concerns about the impact of a trade war on the country's export-dependent economy.

It weakened to 1,487.45 won to the dollar at around 00:10 GMT, a level not seen since March 2009.

On Tuesday, the S&P 500 dropped 1.6% after wiping out an early gain of 4.1%. That took it nearly 19% below its record set in February. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.8%, while the Nasdaq composite lost 2.1%. Uncertainty is still high about what President Donald Trump will do with his trade war.

The sharply higher tariffs were scheduled to kick in after midnight Eastern time in the U.S., and investors have no idea what to make of President Donald Trump’s trade war.

The retreat overnight and into early Wednesday in Asia followed rallies for stocks globally earlier in the day, with indexes up 6% in Tokyo, 2.5% in Paris and 1.6% in Shanghai.