Nikkei 225, Hang Seng Index, Kospi
Kazuhiro Nogi | AFP | Getty Images
Asia-Pacific markets opened lower on Friday as cautious optimism about conflicts in the Middle East softened sentiment and moved away from Wall Street’s record-breaking rally.
US President Donald Trump on Friday said the war in Iran “must end very soon”, repeating his hopeful predictions for an end to the conflict.
Hours earlier, Trump confirmed that Israel and Lebanon had agreed to a 10-day ceasefire starting at 17:00 ET. The Speaker of the Iranian Parliament said that Israel’s stopping of its attacks on Lebanon is the main condition for the start of US-Iran negotiations.
Trump said Thursday that the next round of face-to-face talks between the United States and Iran could happen “probably, maybe next weekend.” The two-week ceasefire between the United States and Iran will end on April 21.
West Texas Intermediate fell 1.43% to S$93.34 per barrel as of 20:02 ET, while Brent crude fell 1.14% to S$98.28 per barrel.
Japan’s export credit agency, the Japan Bank for International Cooperation, will create an investment window of up to 600 billion yen ($3.8 billion) to help Asian countries secure energy supplies, Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama said.
He added that volatility in the oil market affects foreign exchange markets.
Investors are also digesting comments from Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda on Friday, who said the central bank should take Japan’s low real interest rates into account when setting policy.
of japan Nikkei 225 It fell 0.7% on Thursday, taking some profits after a record rise, while the Topix lost 0.62%.
South Korea’s Kospi index lost 0.43%, while the small-cap Kosdaq lost 0.35%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index fell 0.28%.
Hong Kong Hang Seng index Futures were at 26,229 compared to the index’s last close of 26,394.26.
