Hang Seng Index, Kospi, Nikkei 225
November 19, 2025, China, Shanghai: Boats on the Huangpu River pass by downtown Shanghai. The tallest building on the skyline is Shanghai Tower (behind).
Bernd von Jutrczenka | Picture Alliance | Getty Images
South Korea’s Kospi Index lost 7.24% on Wednesday, continuing its sharp sales compared to the previous day, when the index recorded its worst day in 19 months amid the escalating war in the Middle East.
Investors in the region will also watch China’s policymakers’ annual parliamentary meeting, which starts later in the day.
meeting called meeting “Two Sessions” It consists of a consultative congress that will start later in the day and the National People’s Congress that will open on Thursday. Chinese Premier Li Qiang will unveil a set of economic goals at the NPC, largely agreed upon at the December meeting.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 started the day with a 1.81% loss. of japan Nikkei 225 It lost 1.59% while Topix fell 1.61%.
Hong Kong Hang Seng index Futures traded at 25,448, below the benchmark’s last close of 25,768.08.
Oil prices continued gains, with US crude futures rising 0.87% to $75.21, while Brent rose 5.43% to $81.96 a barrel, amid the growing conflict over Iran’s attempt to close the Strait of Hormuz.
A senior commander in Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said on Monday: critical artery was closed He warned that any ship trying to pass through the waterway would be targeted, according to Iranian media.
US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday afternoon that the US Navy would escort tankers through the Strait of Hormuz if necessary.
“No matter what happens, the USA will ensure the FREE FLOW OF ENERGY TO THE WORLD,” he said. Real Social post. “THE ECONOMIC AND MILITARY POWER OF THE USA IS THE GREATEST POWER IN THE WORLD – More action to come.”
Overnight in the US, socks had another wild session as concerns over the protracted US-Iran conflict rattled markets.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 403.51 points, or 0.83%, to end at 48,501.27 points. The S&P 500 index closed at 6,816.63 points with a loss of 0.94 percent, and the Nasdaq Composite index closed at 22,516.69 points with a loss of 1.02 percent. At the day’s low, the S&P 500 lost 2.5% and the Nasdaq lost around 2.7%. At its lowest point, the 30-stock Dow fell more than 1,200 points, or about 2.6%.
—CNBC’s Sean Conlon and Pia Singh contributed to this report.
