Hong Kong (AFP) – Asian markets wavered Tuesday, with tech stocks leading losses as investors tracked easing oil prices and cautious optimism over a potential US-Iran deal. South Korea’s Kospi slid by more than 3.0 percent, as tech stocks lost ground tracking an overnight slump on Wall Street.
But it was the energy markets that drew attention after US President Donald Trump signalled “serious negotiations” with Tehran and called off planned strikes, boosting optimism that tensions could reduce. The war the United States and Israel launched on February 28 has led to an effective blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, through which around 20 percent of global oil exports passed in peacetime.
The leaders of Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates asked Trump “to hold off on our planned Military attack of the Islamic Republic of Iran, which was scheduled for tomorrow, in that serious negotiations are now taking place,” the US president wrote on his Truth Social platform on Monday.
But Trump added that he instructed the US military to be “prepared to go forward with a full, large scale assault of Iran, on a moment’s notice, in the event that an acceptable Deal is not reached.” Speaking later at a White House event, Trump said there had been a “very positive development” and that Arab allies said a deal was near that would leave Iran without nuclear weapons, which Tehran denies pursuing.
“There seems to be a very good chance that they can work something out. If we can do that without bombing the hell out of them, I’d be very happy,” Trump said. The prospect of diplomacy drove the dip in oil, but sentiment remained fragile across equity markets as elevated energy costs continue to fuel inflation risks and cloud the outlook for interest rates.
“The durability of this de-escalation — and whether it translates into a sustained decline in oil prices — remains the single most important driver for global bond yields and Asia EM currencies in today’s session,” said Michael Wan of financial group MUFG.
International benchmark Brent was hovering around $110 and West Texas Intermediate at $108, cooler than the previous day but still up about 80 percent this year owing to the Middle East war, according to Bloomberg News.
Equity performance was mixed, and tech stocks in Asia retreated. In South Korea, artificial intelligence heavyweight SK hynix slid more than 5.0 percent and Samsung Electronics by 1.24 percent. Samsung Electronics — which has also profited massively from the AI memory chip boom — resumed union talks in a bid to avoid a strike over bonus payments.
Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 closed modestly lower, with jitters offset by stronger-than-expected economic data. Japan’s gross domestic product expanded 0.5 percent in the first quarter, exceeding market forecasts of 0.4 percent. Jakarta fell by more than 3.0 percent. Taipei, Bangkok, and Manila were also down. Hong Kong, Shanghai, Sydney, Wellington, Singapore, and Kuala Lumpur were ahead.
In Europe, London, Paris, and Frankfurt were trading in the green. Safe-haven demand was higher, with precious metals gold and silver edging up, underscoring investor wariness.
All eyes are on Wednesday’s quarterly results from US chip titan Nvidia, which will be scrutinised as investors question whether huge spending on AI data centres is justified by potential returns.
– Key figures at around 0810 GMT –
Brent North Sea Crude: DOWN 1.9 percent at $110.00 a barrel
West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.6 percent at $108.00 a barrel
Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.4 percent at 60,550.59 (close)
Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 0.5 percent at 25,797.85 (close)
Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.9 percent at 4,169.54 (close)
London – FTSE 100: UP 0.7 percent at 10,390.68
Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3397 from $1.3422 on Monday
Euro/pound: UP at 86.83 from 86.77 pence
Euro/dollar: DOWN at 1.1632 from $1.1650
Dollar/yen: UP at 159.06 from 158.93 yen
New York – DOW: UP 0.3 percent at 49,686.12 (close)
© 2024 AFP
