TOKYO: Asian benchmarks mostly rebounded Tuesday, echoing cautious relief that swept through Wall Street after President Donald Trump said the United States has talked with Iran about a possible end to their war.
Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 added 1.1 per cent in morning trading to 52,093.02, recovering some of the losses it suffered the previous day.
Toyota Motor Corp's stock price gained 1.1 per cent in morning trading after it announced overnight that it was investing USD 1 billion in its Kentucky and Indiana auto plants. That's part of a plan to invest up to USD 10 billion in the US over the next five years that the Japanese automaker announced in November. Japanese manufacturers have been eager to show their contribution to American jobs and economic growth.
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.5 per cent to 8,404.00. South Korea's Kospi jumped 2.2 per cent to 5,526.24.
Global markets have been on a roller coaster ride over worries about the war in Iran, which began in late February, especially nations in Asia, which are severely affected by any lack of access to the Strait of Hormuz, crucial for energy shipments from the Middle East.
In energy trading, benchmark US crude gained USD 2.02 to USD 90.15 a barrel. Brent crude the international standard, added USD 1.41 to USD 101.35 a barrel, reversing course after easing overnight on Wall Street that came after Trump said the United States and Iran held productive talks “regarding a complete and total resolution of our hostilities in the Middle East” over the last two days.
Iran denied such talks took place and Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf said that “fakenews is used to manipulate the financial and oil markets” in a post on X.
Over the weekend, Trump had threatened to “obliterate” Iran's power plants if it doesn't open up the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours. The narrow waterway off Iran's coast has become a sore point for Trump and the economy because a sharp slowdown in traffic is preventing oil tankers from leaving the Persian Gulf to supply customers around the world.
On Monday, the S&P 500 rose 74.52 points to 6,581.00. The Dow Jones Industrial Average went from a surge of nearly 1,135 points during the morning to a more modest gain of 540 before accelerating to finish with a climb of 631, or 1.4 per cent, to 46,208.47. The Nasdaq composite jumped 299.15, or 1.4 per cent, to 21,946.76.
Stocks of smaller companies were also strong, and the Russell 2000 index of smaller stocks jumped a market-leading 2.3 per cent.
Treasury yields also eased in the bond market following Trump's announcement. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.35 per cent Monday from 4.39 per cent late Friday. But it remains solidly above its 3.97 per cent level from just before the war.
In currency trading, the US dollar edged up to 158.62 Japanese yen early Tuesday from 158.35 yen. The euro cost USD 1.1586, down form USD 1.1610.