Trump Signals End to Iran Conflict; Asian Markets Turn Green
Jakarta — Asian equity markets rallied broadly, led by South Korea’s Kospi index which rose 5% after US President Donald Trump signalled that the military conflict with Iran may be nearing resolution.
The Kospi index opened 5% higher as the regional recovery leader, whilst the Kosdaq index for small-capitalisation stocks gained over 4%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index rose 1.35% in early trading, Japan’s Nikkei 225 jumped 1.66%, and the Topix gained 1.3%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng futures were trading at 25,370, compared to the previous close of 25,408.46.
According to CNBC International, oil prices fell and Wall Street recovered after Trump signalled that the conflict with Iran was likely to conclude soon. Trump stated that the joint US-Israeli military operations launched on 28 February had achieved significant progress.
“We are making great progress towards completing our military objectives,” Trump said, roughly nine days after the conflict began. However, Trump did not provide clear details of the final targets of the military operation, instead emphasising the military successes he claimed had significantly weakened Iranian power.
Trump also indicated consideration of taking control of the Strait of Hormuz, the world’s most vital shipping passage for global oil trade. Following this statement, US crude oil prices fell 6.49% to $88.66 per barrel at 19:28 ET on Monday, a decline that followed oil prices surging past $100.
“With 20% of the world’s oil supply halted, we are experiencing the largest disruption ever,” said Bob McNally, president of Rapidan Energy Group, referring to the Strait of Hormuz closure.
Overnight, US equities posted gains. The S&P 500 rose 0.83% to close at 6,795.99, whilst the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 239.25 points, or 0.5%, ending at 47,740.80. These leading stock indices had recently experienced their largest weekly decline in nearly a year.
The Nasdaq Composite index jumped 1.38% to close at 22,695.95, marking a remarkable reversal from earlier losses in the session. The Dow had fallen nearly 900 points at its session low, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq each declining as much as 1.5%.